Good morning every one, this is a guest post from Glen, he is the owner of www.howtosavemoney.guru, a personal finance website dedicated to helping people save money and find financial freedom. Glen recently paid off over $300,000 in mortgage debt within 7 years, and he wants to share his money saving tips with others to help them get on their way to financial freedom.

Lately it seems like everyone we know is having babies – it’s a really exciting time with lots of first time parents waiting to experience the joys of parenthood.

With all these new babies about to enter the world, it also means that my wife is being invited to plenty of baby showers. Fortunately being a new mom, she has had recent experience with a whole heap of baby products, and so she knows which ones were the most use to her, and what might be worthwhile for others as well.

The downside to going to so many baby showers, is that it can cost a lot of money to buy presents for other people, and baby gear can be terribly expensive. Seeing as most people don’t have endless supplies of money, I asked my wife to give me some tips that she has learned over the last few months in regards to finding the right baby shower gift and not blowing your budget.

Forget the Stuffed Toys

After my wife’s baby shower, we had more stuffed toys than we knew what to do with. Even now that my son is nearing 18 months old, he only really likes about 3 of them, with the other 30 or so stuffed toys being relegated to a big storage chest.

Stuffed toys are cute and everything, but they just aren’t going to be appreciated by the expectant mother as much as something useful – particularly if everyone decides to give her a stuffed animal toy.

 

Don’t Buy Clothes

Unless you have been specifically asked to provide clothes, then this one should be avoided. The reason for this is that quite often people will give new moms their old baby clothes, as their children have grown up and they no longer have any use for them.

Another big problem with buying clothes is that the baby will grow out of them so quickly. I know that our son has a heap of clothes that he has never even tried on, and he never will – he’s just too big now.

If you really want to buy clothes, try to buy ones that are a bit larger, as there is a good chance that everyone else is buying the super tiny outfits that everyone thinks are cute.

 

Identify Useful Products

The thing you want to try and do is find products that are going to be useful and that no one else will be buying. This will be harder for people who haven’t had kids before, but here are a few of the cheaper things we have come up with.

Nursing Pillow – This isn’t going to be as exciting, or as cute as those size 0 shoes, but if the mom to be is planning on breastfeeding, then she is going to love you when it comes time to start feeding. Being bent over trying to feed your baby is no fun, so having a purpose built nursing pillow should help quite a bit – plus, you can pick these up really cheaply.

Diaper Bag – Diaper bags are a must if you ever plan on leaving the house. Now I know that many women have a certain style and so this gift can be a little risky, but there are just so many different things to consider when buying a diaper bag.

Unless you have experienced a good or a bad bag, you aren’t likely to know about all the things to look out for. My wife has put together a great list of diaper bags on her website, as well as all the things to consider before purchasing a bag – you can see it here.

Portable Change Mat – While we are talking about items you will need when you leave the house, one really important one to remember is the portable change mat. Quite often you will go somewhere with your new bub, and there just isn’t anywhere to change them.

A portable change mat will allows parents to be able to change bub no matter where they go. This can be quite a cheap present that can should come in very handy.

 

Pool Your Money With Others

If you really want to get the person something a little bit more expensive, like say a cot, change table or baby car seat – then consider pooling your money with others. This can be a great way to get a quality gift without having to take on the full cost yourself.

 

Cash / Gift Cards

Finally, most new parents are pretty strapped for cash, so while giving money or a gift card isn’t as personal as an actual gift, I am confident that the majority of new parents will appreciate the financial support. I know that my wife and I certainly did – having new babies isn’t cheap and it can  feel like no matter how good you are at saving, or how prepared you might be – there is always money being spent that you didn’t account for.