11: The 5 Best Baby Shower Gifts

Hello and good morning. Today is a really fun episode for me and it's all about some of the best, most useful baby shower gifts that I have both received and gifted.  I've included lower cost and higher cost ideas, so there's really something for everyone in this episode.  We're going to go in order based on cost. 

I'm really excited about this one.  It's not an exhaustive list, obviously, of everything you need to have on hand when you're having a baby, But it is a list of a few really practical and really nice items to have.  Oh, and by the way, I'm not actually an affiliate for any of these items that I'm listing today on the podcast.

So I don't make any money if there are purchases made on these items.  They are just my truly personal recommendations. 

  Starting off with number one is really good burp cloths.  Now this is a little bit misleading because you should not need them for tons of spit up.  If you find that you are doing a ton of wardrobe changes or you need Like a crazy amount of burp cloths for your baby We need to figure out what else is going on there,  but really good absorbing ones like Burt's Bees Organic Cotton ones You Are really super handy for everything from spit up to breast milk letdown to bottle spills and they last for years.

They make great mini towels for diaper bags,  great soft cloths for nose wiping. If you have a household that's trying to reduce paper trash, for example, and the list goes on. And I just really like them and I have used the same pack for years.  Number two is mini board books that don't suck.  Now, not sucking is a really important factor in these because frankly, bad books are just clutter. 

So here are some things to think about.  It should be small enough to hold in one hand while you're holding your baby so that you can read it.  This is a great way to model the sounds and patterns of language  And it also provides an easy script so they can hear more of your voice if you run out of things to talk about. 

Once they are on to tummy time, they stand up really nicely on the ground. So that encourages your baby to look up at something. It can encourage them to look left or right.  It stands up on its own really nicely.  There are a ton of good board book options out there, but I really like the tiny beginner books like Are You My Mother?

or Big Dog Little Dog. They come in that really small size, so those are great.  And there's also a black and white book called Ocean Friends, which can be found on Amazon. It was a huge tummy time hit for Henry when he was little. It was gifted to me and since has been gifted to several friends of mine,  I just keep getting a report back that even though they have other black and white pictures for visual stimulation, for some reason, babies just love this book. 

Number three is quality diapers in a couple of bigger, different sizes. It's really nice to have on hand a couple of diaper sizes that are the next step up. And different brands are great too. Not only does this allow you to try out a couple of different brands to see which one fits your baby the best. 

But, when you're unsure about changing up to the next size, you've got some on hand to test out before you buy them.  It's important to be familiar with the mom you're giving this one to though, because some of us are super picky about diaper ingredients and fragrances, which could turn your fabulously practical gift into a nice donation. 

Number four is the series chiller. I'm not even sure if I'm saying this one right. It's spelled C E R E S, chiller.  Now, I have not actually personally used this item. However, I have heard so many great reviews, especially for moms who go back to work and are pumping, or who are on the go a lot. It's like the Swiss army knife of thermoses for moms.

It's a chiller, meaning you don't have to have a refrigerator or a cooler on hand to keep your milk cold for several hours after you've pumped it, if you're not ready to give it to your baby or put it directly in the fridge.  It can act as a warming container, simply by adding warm water.  You can pump directly into it, so it also acts as a pump collector. 

And, it's really great because it's less dishes and overall less items to carry around. It looks like it would greatly reduce the whole pack mule feeling, especially when you think about carrying a pump and a cooler and ice packs.  In addition to all of that, it's also FSA and HSA approved, so you can use pre tax money to purchase it.

Which really gives a pretty nice discount to an otherwise pricier item.  If you're using something like this pretty frequently, then I would argue that the price per use is actually pretty low.  Moving on to number five is the Baby Boldly Pre Packed Birth Bag.  Now, this is definitely the priciest item on the list.

I mean, it's not like fancy stroller or fancy car seat pricey, but it's not a low budget gift. And there are a range of options price wise on this. And you should know that I am currently collaborating with this small mom owned company to bring feeding education materials to new moms and support them. 

But, prior to this, when I was pregnant with my son,  my good friend from college and co owner of Baby Boldly sent me one of their pre packed birth bags as a shower gift.  So when I experienced receiving this gift as a pregnant, soon to be mom, I was completely unbiased as a recipient of it, and here's why it made the list. 

Not only is it just a really nice looking bag,  But when I opened it, I felt some of my birth anxiety melt.  I felt packed. I no longer felt I needed to scour the internet to compare packing lists and overanalyze them.  This was really, really big for me, because I had a pretty solid level of overthinking about the birth plan. 

I had been a little bit anxious, okay, a lot,  about giving birth for several months.  Also, I had been so focused on getting ready and preparing for the baby and collecting all of my baby items, that I didn't even realize how good it would feel to receive something that really just is nice for me.  To support me and what I was going through, because it is a big change, and because motherhood starts when you're pregnant. 

Since I consider myself a pretty practical person, I also appreciated what was packed inside of it. In fact, I still use the birth bag for travel with my son because of the pockets. Y'all, these large pockets are game changing for organizing baby and toddler travel stuff because if you take your baby somewhere for like one night or seven nights, you still have to pack all the things. 

After I received that gift, felt all of these feelings, and experienced the practicality of it, I've also learned more about the company's mission.  I've since personally gifted this bag to several close friends, and it is always the hit gift.  And again, I do not receive any commissioner money for anyone that purchases any of these recommendations. 

So,  that's it. That's my current top five baby shower gifts:

Really good burp cloths. (Burt’s Bees Burp Cloths)

Mini board books that don't suck. (Ocean Friends)

Quality diapers in a few sizes up.

The CERES chiller. (I hope I'm saying that correctly.)

And the Baby Boldly Birth Bag. 

I hope this episode was helpful when creating your list or shopping for another mom, and I'll see you next week!