After having my own children, I now get teary whenever I hear of a new pregnancy, or the birth of a new baby. It is a very exciting time for the parents-to-be, and the family and friends. Unfortunately, we cannot all afford to be extravagant with gifts for the little bub, so here is our list of baby gift ideas for under ten dollars which will show you care.

• Make up some crafty baby gift certificates that promise 2 x home-made dinners to be delivered (by yourself) in the first few weeks of the baby’s arrival.
• A cute baby outfit … this could be an all-in-one outfit, a few cute singlets or a box of socks. If you’re crafty, you could tie-die some plain singlets, or hand sew (cross-stitch or embroidery) ‘baby’ on a plain onesie. Best and Less have great discounts, as do most other department stores.
• A scented, or chilled padded eyemask for mum so she can get some much-needed sleep in the middle of the day.
• Muslin wraps. These are usually very popular baby gift, get the biggest ones you can find for your budget.
• A sentimental toy or rattle that you have kept since you were a baby. Make a crafty tag with an explanation, to tie on with ribbon.
• A nursery rhyme book. New mum’s have completely forgotten the words to Baa Baa Black Sheep, and Rock-a-Bye Baby.
• Bathtime accessories: An organic bath wash, with a yellow rubber duck. Or a bath toy bag (mesh bag with suction cups) filled with yellow rubber ducks or a few other bath toys. The baby won’t play with them right away, but they will be popular for years to come. Baby face washers come in handy, and not just in the bath.
• A cute hat or handmade beanie / booties, mittens make great baby gifts
• A hooded towel and mitt set (an exception here … worth mentioning at $12.87 from Big W)
• A mirror for the car – reversible so baby can see mum when in the reverse facing capsule
• At craft markets, you can find some cute wooden clothes hangers
• A picture frame. If you can get hold of baby photos of the parents, they can look cute in the frame too.
• Toys R Us sell cute pop-up baby gift hampers with butterflies on them,
• A suction bowl and spoon. If you can get a bowl with divided sections in it, bonus!
• Baby Links. A bag of plastic links to hang just about any toy, hang light bags from the pram and can also be chewed on and used as teething rings. These were one of the best presents we received.
• Anything personalised. If you are crafty, and know the babies name … then paint a timber frame, or buy a cross-stitch kit and get sewing, sew a pillowcase, make a nappy hanger, sew a teddy bear.
• Removable wall decor / stickers
• Growth chart. Again, if you’re handy, make one from a strip of timber and paint baby bears on it.

There’s lots of cute, crafty, gorgeous and useful baby gift ideas for babies under ten dollars. And if these individual gifts aren’t your style, pool your money together with friends and buy one big gift instead.

Alison Parks
www.undertendollarsblog.com

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