Ideas for a Baby Registry

Baby registries help ensure you will receive exactly the right tools to help you keep your new baby safe and healthy. Also, registries help friends and family know they are buying you a gift no one else is giving you. However, many of these lists are full of the same basic, practical items for expectant parents that don't allow any creativity from the gift-giver. Think outside the box for your baby registry to include much-needed, but often non-traditional, gifts. Keep your baby registry needs in one place using free online sites such as My Registry and Wish Pot. These can include items from any store as well as items you make up, such as babysitting time.

  1. Essentials

    • Include some of the basics in your baby registry. Find items in different price ranges to fit all budgets. Add such items as furnishings, diapers, clothes, strollers, car seats, bath time, bottles and feeding gear, safety gadgets and activity tools, such as bouncy seats and mobiles. Choose items you think you'll need throughout the first year, not just the day you bring the baby home.

    Going Green

    • If you plan to surround your baby with safe, organic items, put that in your registry notes in addition to adding the items to the registry list. This will help buyers know to purchase eco-friendly gifts if they stray from the registry list. Easy-to-find organic baby items include blankets and crib linens, baby wash and shampoo, bottles, toys, diapers (some disposable diapers are more eco-friendly than others) and baby food.

    Non-Traditional Gifts

    • Although the essentials are, well, essential for your new baby, add more creative items to your registry. Only add items you really want or that mean something special to you. For example, storing your baby's cord blood is expensive, but most cord-blood banks accept payments from friends and family as registry gifts. Also, ask your loved ones to donate money to your child's education fund to get it started early. Include information on your favorite photographer so someone can purchase a newborn photography session for you. If the environment is important to you, ask for trees to be planted in your child's name from websites such as the Arbor Day Foundation.

    Gifts of Time

    • Free time becomes a luxury after you bring the new baby home. Plan ahead by asking for gifts of time in your baby registry. Allow people to sign up for babysitting slots, either at your house while you go out with your spouse or at their homes while you get some much-needed sleep. Ask for healthy, easy-to-reheat meals to be delivered, or for friends and family to come over and help you with basic cleaning while you become adjusted to life with your baby.

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