OT- How to make 1st grandchild shower special

[mickeys friend]

We are going to be grandparents for the 1st time in Oct.My daughter and son in law are having a shower in Aug (middle) and I'd love to hear on ways to make it special and not go broke.She has alot of family and friends who are helping ( and looking forward to it ).But I'd love to do something really special for them without going broke.Also any gift ideas from us to them that would be more than the normal gift would be great.They are having a girl and this baby has been a long time coming for them and both sides of grandparents.Any help would be great.Thanks

 

[A Mickeyfan]

Anything you do will make it "special" since it is done out of love. It is always the thought of something that makes it special, not how well planned or how much the gift was...

 

[4HppyCamprs]

I agree with PP anything done out of love will be special Are you looking for special gift ideas or special party ideas??

 

[mickeys friend]

I think more in the line of gift because the shower has been already planned out very good by family and friends.I have some things that I am going to give her that we have had in our (meaning her sisters and her ) family since my 1st daughter was born in 1973 and that every child in all the family have used and has been but away in a cedar chest since the last family member was born.One is a very nice lace white blanket (very light and fancy) and this is something that cost alot back then (was a gift) and no one has seen anything like it since (alot of people wanted to purchase one like it) and also a handmade quilt made in 1973 by a family member for a baby and also a Jim Shore mother/daughter figure that has a really nice verse.I know we will get them something that they are signed up for,but want to make sure I give them something that they will never forget.The lace blanket isn't made out of yarn,it's all lace and a thin white backing and also trimed with lace and it's very soft to the touch.Everyone in all the family has asked to bring their children home from the hospital in this,it very special and has been taken very good care of.It would be something she wouldn't be using every day,but on special days like when she brings her home and to church.What do you think so far?

 

[Momto4boys]

How about finding a small cedar chest where she can do the same things you have and keep the traditions going?

Those items sounds beautiful and wonderful!

 

[TnTWalter]

How about finding a small cedar chest where she can do the same things you have and keep the traditions going?

Those items sounds beautiful and wonderful!

great idea.

 

[mickeys friend]

I agree,great idea.Thanks,keep them coming.

 

[ENSOCK]

My Dsis had the shawl from her daughter's wedding dress made into a blanket for her first grandbaby. The shawl was not used in the wedding but was still reused as a beautiful blanket. Maybe if you have your wedding dress you could have a christening gown made from it?

One thing I have seen at family showers, everything is for baby...my Aunt gave a gift of a beautiful gown and robe for my cousin to wear for after when she had vistors. I have seen online matching gowns for both baby and mom.

Congrats on your first grandbaby!

 

[mickeys friend]

Oh,when I read the post about christening gown,I remembered that my mother in law made one by hand for my 1st daughter when she was born and it too is in my cedar chest.Looks like I really need to get into it and see what else is there.Matching gowns would be great.Do you know where to look for them?Keep the ideas coming.Thanks

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

I think a cedar chest is a great idea and very versatile. My grandfather made one for me when I was a little girl (don' think it was a baby gift), but I used it as a toy chest/doll clothes trunk as a child and now I use it to store blankets in my bedroom.

Suzanne

 

[ardig123]

Sounds like you have some good ideas...for my shower my parents gave me 2 gifts...one for the family and one for myself...for myself I was given a very cozy robe to wear in the hospital along with slippers. For the family, we were given a very nice video camera that at the time we could not afford. The video camera has been used and enjoyed many times over the past 6 years to record many events. I loved both gifts and still fondly remember them because they were unique and different from the normal gifts given for the baby.

 

[MrsPete]

I vote for something homemade (i.e, a quilt, cross-stitch birth announcement, keepsake box) or something old and sentimental (a piece of your jewelry if the baby's a girl, a family crest if it's a boy). You know what I'm getting at: Something that can't be bought.

I have saved one box of things for each of my girls, and I intend to give it to them when they announce they're expecting their first child. The boxes each contain the outfits in which they came home from the hospital, their first Christmas dresses, and a couple other little outfits. They also contain a few little cups and bowls, a blanket, and a couple other little items. Oh, and a few board books. For all I know, these may be useless on a practical level. I had small girls in the springtime; for all I know, they'll have huge boys in the winter. But I thought it'd be nice for them to have a few hand-me-downs from their own childhood. I read up on how to preserve these things, and so far they're looking good.

And you can't do any better than starting a college fund.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

My mother had my Christening Gown cleaned (and I was nearly 30 with my first child) and gave it to me for my DS's Christening. I used it for all 3 of my children. That was not my gift, she just passed it on to me. My first "baby shower" came in the form of a Christening party.. my first child was a premiee..

 

[A Mickeyfan]

I too like the idea of a chest to store those family heirlooms

 

[MrsPete]

...for myself I was given a very cozy robe to wear in the hospital along with slippers.

That's nice! Something for mom. A nursing nightgown would be nice too -- I loved mine and wore them 'til they were rags.

Another thing I love-love-loved and have since given to several mothers-to-be: A nursing pillow. I didn't have one with my first child, but I always had a bed pillow lying on the sofa for this purpose. I got a nursing pillow with my second, and it was so convenient: It was just the right size/shape, and it really saves the back muscles while you're holding the baby. When I was away from home and needed to feed her, I missed my pillow badly!

 

[annsteere]

DS is a grandma and she gave her daughter a child's rocker with an engraved plate under the seat wishing good things to each child who would enjoy it.

I'm not a grandma--yet--. But, when the big day comes, DD will get a child's rocker that I used as a child, she used as a child, and now her child can use.