Imagine the joy of the parents as they throw a baby shower. The baby may still be on the way but the parents in their excitement have decided to give a baby shower in anticipation of their forthcoming baby. This is a normal reaction and it is expected to have prenatal showers. Parents normally would know the gender of the child from medical tests and they would announce it as part of the invitation. This gives you a clue to the type of baby gift you should be getting for the shower.

Most baby gifts are appropriate regardless of gender. The only identifier to the gender may be the color and you can play safe and pick a neutral color. You can choose a variety of baby essentials as shower gifts. Blankets and pillows are a necessity but there is a limit on how many will be needed by the baby. Clothes, on the other hand, have no limit. The baby will be needing a regularly constant change of clothes because of wetness or similar baby traits. The baby will definitely be needing a great deal of diapers. It appears to be a very practical gift but might not be a very impressive gift.

Another practical gift could be baby bottles. The baby has to be fed several times in a day. It is common practice to have a stack of baby bottles ready for feeding. The parents can schedule the cleaning of the bottles at a convenient time and still have a sufficient number to continue feeding the baby. Other baby necessities could be baby powder, shampoo, oil, lotion and soap. These items can be found in any baby store. Try getting a few of all the essentials and put them together in a gift basket.

If you feel the essentials have been addressed adequately, look at other items, such as a crib, stroller, nursery decorations, rattles and teething rings. You may have to consult with the parents on some of the items. The parents may have their own ideas on the design or they may have already secured the items. For example, it may not be worthwhile getting a crib if the parents already have one. Your intentions may be noble but having two cribs for one baby does not seem appropriate. Silver toys are always welcomed. The toy is more durable and the silver can be viewed as an investment.

Before you buy the gift, it is best to ask the parents what baby items they need the most. This may be the more logical means of choosing a gift as you avoid duplications and know exactly what are their desires. Try to get an assortment of what they need so you can select whatever is within your budget. In some cases, parents may select a gift shop and mention it in the invitation. You just to go there and put whatever cash you can afford on the item you want them to have. The gift shop will monitor the payments and put aside the item for them once it is fully paid. If the item remains not fully paid, they can pay the outstanding balance later. At least, you’ve done your share to help them along the path of parenthood.

When you host a baby shower, you are expected to move and act in a certain way that is deemed socially acceptable – for now. Baby shower etiquette changes over time, but these general tips are still up to date.

One of the baby shower etiquette to observe is the identity of the person hosting or planning the event. Friends and close family of the parents can host the baby shower, but not the parents themselves. It would appear as if you are soliciting for gifts for your baby, even though you just want to have a celebration for your blessing.

If you wish to have the mother-to-be to have the perfect gifts, you can ask her to fill in a baby registry. This is a list of baby items that the parents would want to have for their baby. Baby registries can be found in baby stores and can be filled up by the expectant parents. They can be filled 2-3 months before the due date.

If you are going to send out invitations, it would be best to give them ahead of time, usually a month or so earlier. This will give them time to shop for gifts and also program their schedule to allot some free time for the event. You can send them via email or regular mail, which ever you prefer. But if you are going to invite someone who is always away from home to check on regular mails on a regular basis, you may want to spend some time sending the invitation via email.

It is somewhat expected for baby showers to have baby shower games. This is to reduce the boredom off the event, and also as an ice breaker to bring guests together. The game can involve guests only or have the mother-to-be participate in them as a judge. Just check if she is feeling good and not at all cranky about participating.

As for the venue of the baby shower, there are no rules that limit where it should be held. What you need to consider is how your guest of honor will bring home those gifts that she will get. Since she is expecting, it would be nice to have a venue that is near her home. And there is no rule book either that tells you not to host the baby shower in her home.

Before, it was not customary to include husbands in baby showers. That was during the age of chauvinism. Nowadays, fathers now recognize their part in raising children, and would want to be included every step of the way; and that includes baby showers.

These etiquette tips should not ruin your enjoyment of your planned baby shower. Consider that what is acceptable baby shower etiquette today may be different tomorrow. In contrast, there are some unacceptable actions years ago that are now tolerated and accepted. It all boils down to common sense, courtesy, and respect of tradition and social standards.

When we first had our baby, nobody taught us (properly) what must-haves we should be getting. We end up buying the items one by one whenever the need arise. Which was, of course, quite tedious and such an inconvenience. You have 9 months to prepare for your little one, so there should have been no excuse over missing over needed items.

First in your list should be baby clothes. Lots of them. Not because you wish to play dress-up with your little one. Babies tend to have a lot of accidents like spewing after a feed, leaking diapers, and so on. Plan to have at least 3-5 changes a day. If you’re doing the laundry by batches and daily, then it is definitely a good idea to have lots of baby clothes handy.

Have you made a choice whether to use cloth or disposable diapers? You need to have at least a dozen cloth diapers if you wish to use them, as well as a diaper pail that can contain the smell. Have in mind also some wipes for your little one, as well as baby powder or petroleum jelly to prevent diaper rash. You can have a diaper caddy to get things convenient for you. Some suggest that you have a Diaper Genie II to contain the smell of your disposable diapers. It wraps your used diaper in plastic and seals in the smell. If you’re planning on a lot of traveling, have a diaper bag handy. Skip Hop diaper bags are just big enough to hold in your baby items, yet stylish enough so as not to cramp your style. Unless you tell them, people will not know you’re carrying a diaper bag at all.

When you take your little one out for a walk, or doing household chores, a baby sling is just perfect for you. This way you have your hands free to wash the dishes, cook dinner, fold clothes, and even eat comfortably whenever your little one becomes all fussy and irritable. You can have a stroller if you need it, but when you get that baby sling, you’ll forego that stroller.

Have a set of feeding bottles, 6-10 pieces would be enough. You may be planning on breastfeeding, but there may be circumstances when you won’t be able to do so. We planned on breastfeeding our baby, but because she was in the neonatal intensive care unit for 10 days, she got used to being bottle fed. We could no longer train her to breastfeed for I have ceased producing adequate amount of milk necessary to sustain her. We had a huge problem over cleaning and preparing the bottles for we only had 3 handy. You can have a choice of boiling them in a large pot, or buying a sterilizer.

Get the right-sized crib for your little one. You can start with a bassinet for the first month. A big crib will be overwhelming for someone who’s been living in a confined environment for 9 months. A mobile on your baby’s crib would be a great addition to help stimulate his vision and eye coordination. Leave heavy blankets for the time being as well as stuffed toys and heavy pillows for the first years of your baby. A swaddle blanket may be good enough to keep your baby warm. You can try this Miracle Blanket to keep your little one comfortable without the fear of getting him suffocated.

Buy a little tub for your little one to bathe on. You have a selection of sizes to choose from. What’s great about a tub is that you can bathe the baby inside the room for fast changing. Or you can buy a baby lounger that you can use to prop your baby while you bathe him in an adult-sized bath tub.

These would be the basic items that you may want for your little one. Make sure that you have them when you bring your little one home from the hospital so you can just enjoy taking care of him without hassling over a lacking item.

A diaper cake is a great gift to give to expectant moms. The cake is mainly made out of diapers rolled in and held together using rubber bands and ribbons and decorated with other baby items. Buying one is quite expensive, so it’s quite a plus if you make it yourself, and you get to add in a personal touch to make the gift more meaningful.

Ingredients

To form your diaper cake, you will need the following ingredients.

* 50-60 small or newborn sized diapers. You can use cloth or disposable ones, but it would be advisable to buy the diapers that are among the medium or high quality price range. Some mothers are quite finicky and appreciates diapers that a bit impressive and expressive.

* A box of various-sized rubber bands to bundle up your diapers

* A cardboard cake base, illustration board, or a disposable platter 16″ in diameter. This would serve as your support base for your cake.

* A ribbon that is between 1″-3″ wide to decorate and bind your diapers together

* Any other items that you would give to your hostess. Pacifiers, feeding bottle nipples, diaper clips if you’re giving her cloth diapers, bibs, teething rings, and toys fit for an infant can be great decorations to your cake.

* A topper that can complete the theme. It can be breast pump, a cuddly teddy bear, or anything that is appropriate.

Assembling your cake

Roll in your diapers in such a way that you tuck the tabs in. Keep the diaper rolled in with the use of a rubber band. Place an appropriate number of diapers on top of the base and secure them together using your chosen decorative ribbon. Attach the diapers on the base using adhesive tape. Now prepare the second tier the same way until you reach the top tier. Make sure that you hide the rubber bands when you bundle them together with the ribbon. You can also drape the diaper with a receiving blanket to make it the icing of your diaper cake. Place on some decorations and make sure they are secure. Top it with your chosen centerpiece, and you’re all good.

A diaper cake can really make the conversation going for a lot of mothers will definitely ask you how you did it. Admit it, it’s not an easy feat, so you have the privilege to bask over some praise when you give this to your expectant mother. It’s a better gift for the mother can definitely use each little ingredient that you include in the cake, and it’s also quite inexpensive. You don’t have to worry about whether the style would fit the baby, or if it’s not age appropriate. You can search for videos on the web that can help you make your own diaper cake. Have fun baking.