It's not unusual for expectant mothers to be given more than one baby shower in anticipation of a new arrival, which can quickly translate into more onesies or outfits than any one child could ever use.
One way to keep a clothing avalanche (and the resulting gift returns) to a minimum is to have a book shower instead. Rather than tradition baby items, attendees are asked to bring a children's book they enjoy to give the parents a head-start on building Baby's library. Not only are the expectant parents well-prepared for bedtime story requests and starting the lovely and educational habit of reading to their child, sharing a beloved book is much more personal and meaningful than ordering off a department story registry.
A nice touch to Baby Book Shower would be to include a bookplate with the invitation that guests could use to inscribe with a special message and affix to the inside cover of their gift.
Baby's extra friends or relatives might consider going in together to purchase a sturdy little bookshelf to neatly store all these literary treasures.
1. Another nice addition is to have close family relatives recored themselves reading the book on CD or even on DVD for those who are far away. These are great mementos to keep for years to come.
Posted at 4:42PM on Jun 23rd 2008 by Jenni