Baby Shower Gifts and Things I Didn't Have

Lucy, Kristen, Claire, Rachel and Gale - Hostesses of Beth's friends baby shower

Janene, Nanny and Kim - Hostesses of the family baby shower

Little Elliotte isn't even here yet but she has had 2 parties so far to equip her with everything she'll need as a baby. She is fortunate to have a mom and dad with so many friends and family who want to show their love by the giving of gifts. There have been a wide range of gifts for Elliotte and her nursery. She is going to be the best dressed baby this side of the Mississippi!

Now, you usually expect to get some baby clothes, blankets, picture frames, books, etc. at these kind of showers. That's why you register at stores that carry baby stuff. This way if people don't know what to get for the baby, they can buy things on your registry and it takes stress out of finding a gift. Elliotte received some beautiful "keepsake" gifts at both showers. These are gifts that Elliotte will NEVER play with or even touch until she gets older and can appreciate the sentiment. Although, my mother reminds me of the time I took my sterling silver cup outside and proceeded to bang it on anything that would make noise, without her knowledge of course. I have my cup in my china cabinet now and it looks like someone took a hammer to it but you can still see my name engraved on it. At least I didn't leave it in the driveway and let the garbage man run over it like my sister did with her cup!! Here are a few of Elliotte's keepsake gifts.

handmade gown, handmade blanket & cap, monogrammed quilt

The pink handmade blanket and cap were made by Elliotte's great, great, great Aunt Sara. And believe me, at 86 she is a GREAT, funny lady!! I'm sure Elliotte will receive more beautiful "keepsake" gifts that she will someday put in her china cabinet or display in a shadowbox. Or leave outside for her daddy's truck to run over!

Now I want to talk about some new and different things for baby. 1. Pacifier Keeper, to keep the passie from getting lost or dirty until the next time. In my day it was hard enough to keep up with the pacifier, much less a pacifier keeper. If I can't find the pacifier, then I can't find the keeper it's in either! And forget about keeping it clean. As long as it hasn't been on the floor or in the dog's mouth for more than 5 seconds, wipe it off with your shirt and stick it in the baby's mouth. 2. Baby monitors with sound and a view of the baby. In my day, your ears and eyes were the monitor. If you wanted to make sure the baby was fine you just cracked the door a little and looked in. It also got you up off the couch or bed for some exercise to walk to the baby's room. If the baby saw you at the door and started crying, you called for the daddy. (who was usually sound asleep and heard NOTHING!) And what is with this 3. Wipe Warmer thing. Are we inventing stuff just to spend our money on? What's wrong with a wipe right out of the box? It may be a little on the cool side but they need to learn that's life! What's next, a baby bidet? 4. "Contour" pads for the changing table. I'll admit I have one on the changing table in my nursery. But my kids had a thin foam pad on their table which did the job. If I change Elliotte's diaper where I changed most of her mother's, it will be on the floor with the dog sniffing the diaper and her hiney. 5. Squirt baby food dispenser. You put the food in the squeeze handle of this spoon and squirt out a spoon full at the time. I don't really understand the concept here because the food ends up mostly on you or the baby instead of in the mouth. So what difference does it make if the food comes from a squirt dispenser or a regular spoon? 6. Jumperoo. This is a contraption that you put the baby in with all kinds things on it that makes sounds and lights up, plus they can jump around anywhere. We used to have jumpers that hooked on the top of the door frame. You put the baby in it and they jumped to their hearts content in one place. Unless you didn't screw it tight enough to the door frame, in which case, when the baby jumped, they landed on their behind and started crying (that's the sound that comes with the jumper!).

Well, I guess that's enough for this blog. Beth and Ben have a couple of more parties so I'm sure there will be more things to blog about! It's amazing how baby things have changed in 30 years. Some for the better, some I'm not so sure about. Until next time.........God bless!