So many friends in our (socially distanced) circle are expecting or just welcomed beautiful new babies! I wanted to share a few of the things I typically buy to celebrate the arrival of a new little one – and the birthing parent too.
(That William Morris quote comes to mind as a guide: "Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." Although in this case beauty is in the eye of the parent, so I lean more towards use.)
- Something from the registry. This is an easy one and always a good bet. The parents-to-be know what they need! Get it for them.
- Burp cloths. These will always (always) come in handy. I'm going to share the sewing tutorial for the black linen quilted one you see in the photo soon; the pretty rainbow ones I ordered from here, and they're only $8 for a set of two [affiliate link].
- Baby hats. Again, so useful, especially for winter babies! And I'm quite certain there's nothing cuter than a baby in a bonnet. I knitted these two; the pink one with this free pattern (the same pattern I used to knit the hat Miles wore home from the hospital) and the bonnet with a pattern from this book.
- Reverse zip pajamas. [affiliate link] I was so grateful for these when Miles was tiny. Target sells sets of three pajamas that have a zipper which zips from top to bottom instead of bottom up. This means being able to do diaper changes without getting your baby undressed all the way – so nice for middle-of-the-night changes, especially when it's cold!
- Postpartum healing tea. We got lots of incredibly sweet gifts after Miles was born, and one of them was a bag of postpartum hormone-balancing tea. This was a BIG help to me in those first few bleary weeks. It was the only thing that took the edge off my anxiety and I was grateful for it every day. (And there was no note! I still don't know who sent it!) I haven't been able to find the exact same tea, but this one looks similar and I ordered a few bags for friends who will soon be postpartum [affiliate link].
I'd love to hear your go-to gifts for new babies and their parents, or what you received after having a baby that really came in handy.