Your baby’s first birthday is an important milestone which we are all eager to celebrate. BUT, and there’s a big but here, the reality is…our/your baby will not remember any of it. Most likely your home is already full of toys and clothes. Whether it’s gifts from the baby shower and holidays or hand-me-downs from friends and family with older kids, if you are like me, you have a mix of all of the above! I’m a member of a few different mom groups on various platforms and this question always seems to come up A LOT. So what should you get baby for their first birthday or when friends/family ask the question what to get to celebrate this important first year milestone?
Here’s a few ideas…
- Something Sentimental
Of course, your son/daughter is not going to understand this right now, so buying something that they can keep as they grow is a great gift idea that will last and have meaning. If they’re like my son, whatever you give them right now will most likely end up in his mouth (can you say hello teething).
- Personalized Jewelry – An engraved necklace or a meaningful charm that can be moved to larger bracelets as your child gets older are some great examples of this. Also, this isn’t only for girls. A cross, horn or other religious or cultural symbol can be unisex and just as meaningful later in life to both a son or daughter.
- A custom book – I bought one of these for my husband for his first father’s day for him and my son. There are many different versions and it can be customized to look like your child. The “When I grow up” style books are great because as they get older and visions of what they want to be changes, they will enjoy the different ideas of what they could be. The book is customized by selecting 10 different careers, styling the child-like your baby (hair and eye color, etc.) and their name. You can also include a special message printed in the front of the book.
- Practical
Again, if you are struggling with ideas for friends/family who are asking what to get baby, and do not want more “stuff” here are some good options.
- Contributions to a college fund – We started a Florida Pre-paid plan for our son so when we are asked, contributions to his college fund is our favorite practical gift. We took this idea from a friend who wrote a tasteful note on her invitations like “In lieu of gifts, we are asking for contributions towards Liam’s College Fund. No amount is too small and Liam is blessed to have plenty of clothes and toys.” I did not include this on my invitations but have been telling friends and family when they ask for gift ideas.
- Clothing – If you do not have a specific clothing size or much of a specific type of clothing, this makes a perfect and practical gift. I purposefully have been avoiding buying any 18-24 month clothing until I see what he gets for his birthday. Baby clothes are so much fun to buy so I know the grandmas and aunts will be contributing here. But if you need more 18-month pajamas or bathing suits for summer, this is a great idea to tell people or gift your little one (I end up buying cute clothes I see anyway, so if it’s for future, wrap it up, it’s a perfect gift!).
- Diapers – We just finished the diapers from the diaper raffle at my shower. We only had to buy some when we ran out of a certain size, so we were lucky not to have to buy too many diapers this past year. Diapers are ALWAYS appreciated! So if your good in the clothing department, posey on over to the diaper section and grab a few packs, they are always needed.
- Learning/Educational Toys
You probably look around your home and think you have more than enough baby toys, but if you really look at what you have, there could be some key educational or learning toys your baby is missing. Liam is missing a building block style toy and some outside/pool toys. Maybe you haven’t started your baby on non-toxic finger painting or coloring (supervised of course but this is great tactile play) or a shape sorter? Whatever it is, try to think of varied learning so you don’t end up with more of the same types of toys!
Did this post help you get ideas for your baby’s first birthday? Or maybe it gave you ideas for another lucky soon to be one-year old? Let us know what you bought. Share your best gifts or any other ideas you might have that was a hit in the comments!
