Whenever a close friend or family member has a child, especially if it is the first child, it is a strange and distinct experience for you as that person's loved one. You aren't even the parent yet you feel a sense of responsibility and affection for the child that you just can't shake. There is only so much that you can do for this little child since you are not the parent, but the least you can do is extend your hand to the child from the very beginning. Start things off on the right foot with a little gift to celebrate the baby's introduction to the world. But try to avoid the obvious choices like a stuffed animal, and look for more personalized unique baby gifts. You can make this gift so much more meaningful and special to the parents and their newborn bundle of joy just by putting a little bit more thought into which gifts you choose. It will show that you truly do care about the parents and child and are not just handing them a gift to be polite and respectful.

You might want to consider exploring more options and expanding your idea of typical baby shower gifts or the traditional "perfect gift" for a baby. Think outside of the box a little bit with your selection of good baby gifts and find something more special. The parents will certainly appreciate the effort you put into this gift, marking this special occasion for them with a small token of your love and friendship. The baby may not be able to fully understand what your gift means right away, but should still be able to enjoy it even if it is a few years down the line. J Devlin Glass Art has some ideas for personalized baby gifts that you and the parents probably would not have thought of at first. Rather than choosing the expected baby shower gifts, find personalized unique baby gifts to show your sincerity and best wishes to this new little family.

For the Baby

Christmas Ornaments

Let’s start off this list of personalized unique baby gifts with a sense of tradition. It is customary in many households to give Christmas ornaments as gifts to celebrate someone's first-ever Christmas with the family. The ornament not only acts as a gift at the moment, but it also contributes to the tree every year they use it. A small reminder like that adds to a family’s annual holiday traditions by showing how many years have passed since this family member has been with them to enjoy the holidays. It marks the passage of time in a sweet, sentimental way, reminding everyone of the early days when a baby was brought to a Christmas tree for the first time, cooing in awe at the twinkling lights. You could give this little newborn an ornament to start its collection off and get the ball rolling for more ornaments over time.

With this sort of gift, you do not just give them something to enjoy a handful of times before they get bored of it, as children often do. You are giving them something to see every year during the holiday season when everything appears a bit more wondrous in the eyes of a child. Both the parents and the child can enjoy this addition to the tree. It certainly is a welcome sight when you find a beautiful personalized ornament to dress the tree. You can go for the more traditional type of “Baby’s First Christmas” ornament of a little glass plaque that has the message and year engraved on it. Or you could choose something more subtle, like butterflies and birds, or something that reminds you and the family of their baby.

Night Lights

The baby might still be too young to understand this concern, but that day will soon come when they ask to start sleeping with the lights still on. Giving a small child a glass night light as a gift might qualify you as one of their favorite adults of all time. This is a gift that will be valued by the child much more than you would probably anticipate. Some of us still remember those nights as a child when the dark room made even the most mundane things like an open closet door seem like something scary. A small glass night light could help to make those scary monsters go away in no time. Suddenly you are the hero with the magical solution to all of their problems sleeping soundly.

While it will be most appreciated in a few more years, a night light will still make a good, unique and unexpected gift for a baby. A stained glass night light makes a nice decorative element to a nursery. The baby might not be able to identify the source of light, but will still be able to enjoy lying down in a crib under the gentle glow it exudes. The parents could enjoy having a night light in the room as well since it creates a relaxed atmosphere at night without having to flip the light switch on. This should help out during their many late-night trips to the baby’s room during those first few months. The mom and dad might not have thought of getting one for the baby until it was a little older, but they will enjoy it nonetheless. With this unique gift, the parents and child would want to thank you.

Kaleidoscopes

You wanted a personal, unique gift, so here you have it. This is certainly taking you off the beaten path of typical baby gifts that one would expect. While a kaleidoscope is not the sort of toy you would think to give a baby at first, you will find it makes a lovely toy for a child to play with. Kaleidoscopes are fun little instruments that make children wonder. They want to know how it works and why it has that effect. They cannot imagine how all of that vision can be kept within one little tube. It’s all strange yet marvelous to them. A good toy for a child is one that makes them think and one that lasts. As cute as some toys are, you know that the child will grow out of it all too quickly and never look back. A kaleidoscope has more staying power than that. It is the sort of thing that you can keep turning back to overtime when you want to see something beautiful but interesting.

A kaleidoscope can start off as a toy for a child but eventually morph into a keepsake for an adult, especially one of high quality. It is the sort of thing that someone would keep with them over the years for the sake of sentimentality and cherish as an adult. It is a beautiful reminder of simpler days when they would look through a kaleidoscope in wonder. The experience changes, but the feeling is still there. This is the sort of gift that holds its value over time. As small toys and baubles come and go, this is one of the few things that remain. And it all started with a little toy that someone gave them when they were still small.

For the Parents

Picture Frames

Perhaps you were interested in giving the parents a gift as well to celebrate the birth of their child and to provide them with a small keepsake to honor the joyous event. In that case, you can still choose a more personal gift than the standard baby shower gifts of baby blankets or a pacifier. As simple as it sounds, we are certain that the parents will appreciate a personalized picture frame as a gift. It would be even better if you could include a picture of the family all together with the baby so it will act as a small family portrait, perfect for leaving on display in their living room or even taking to work to sit on a desk. They are also bound to love a framed picture of their newborn by itself, wrapped up in a blanket, sleeping soundly.

Adding a personalized message to the picture frame is just the cherry on top. It connects that photo with the frame and makes it all come together as one special item that they can cherish for years as their little one grows up to be a small child and young adult. You could of course write the date and their names on the picture frame to keep it simple, but you may also want to leave a brief personal message to the family giving them your best wishes. It could be something as simple as “Welcome to the Family” or a short quote that means something to all of you. One detail people like to include is the height and weight of the child at birth. It is just a sweet thing to remember and commemorate. A personalized picture frame is such a small gift to give someone to celebrate something so momentous, but it will most definitely be received warmly.

Photo Display & Keepsake Boxes

Another gift idea for the parents to celebrate the birth of their child is a glass photo box or keepsake box. Similar to the picture frame, a photo display box will give them a place to turn when they want to reflect on their early days of parenting and see their child’s little face not long after being brought home. The main idea that sets these gifts apart from picture frames is the addition of time. While a picture frame captures a single moment that they can look back on whenever they wish, photo display boxes and keepsake boxes are meant to change and develop over time with the parents and child. These gifts are special because they only get better over the years as the parents collect new memories as a family.

A photo display box is not meant to hold a single photo like a picture frame is. It is meant to gather and store many photos over time. Parents can photograph special moments in the child's life like a baptism, the first day of school, or dance recitals. Everyday moments of time spent at home become cherished memories over time. All of these photographs come together and sit inside of this one beautiful glass box and make this gift mean more and more over time. Each photograph makes this gift more special to the parents and that is appreciated.

A keepsake box is similar in this way. Its true value is shown over time as more things are added to it. It can be used to store the baby's first pieces of jewelry or small charms and trinkets that have nowhere else to go. This beautiful decorative glass box adds to a room just by being there but gets even better when put to practical use. At some point, the parents might even use it for the tooth fairy's visits. Eventually, their child could start using the box for their own special items that seem to only make sense in a child’s mind like individual game cards and special coins.

Show your loved ones your sincere wishes for their little family by welcoming their new bundle of joy into the world with something meaningful and special just to them. You have plenty more options to choose from than you may have initially thought. So take your time to find the best unique baby gifts and add a personal touch by including a customized, personal message on it if you can. That is part of the reason why we began including the option for personalized messages at J Devlin Glass Art. We wanted people to be able to express themselves and commemorate occasions right on the special little items they purchase. It adds a nice touch to a present that makes a moment feel like it was frozen in time so you could enjoy it for years to come. Go ahead and explore these suggestions for more personalized unique baby gifts and any other ones you have in mind. We are certain that the family will be grateful.