My Grandson will soon be turning 1. What is a good gift for him? My daughter lives out of town and the party will be with his other grandparents and all aunts and uncles and his little cousins. He is, of course the apple of my eye and I want something special for a special boy.
Have you asked her what he needs? I would do that first. Also, will you be attending the party? My sis bought my kids "My first Chair" from Pottery Barn Kids with their name on it...Great gift and they know that "Auntie" was the gift giver...
My parents contributed to my daughter's 529 college account. It's not setimental or anything, but when my daughter graduates, she will have my parents to thank for it and I think that is the best gift ever. My parents continue to contribute for every birthday and Christmas. My daughter gets enough stuff, but college will last her forever. And we discussed with my parents that if my daughter gets a full scholarship and doesn't need the 529, the money they put in and the interest it will accrue will be put towards the purchase of a car.
We were overwhelmed with all of the gifts my daughter got at her first birthday party. She got so many clothes that she didn't get a chance to wear all of them before she outgrew them and she got so many toys that we didn't have room for. Money was the best gift because we were able to deposit it into her savings account. Books are always a hit at our house - I feel like you just can't spoil a kid with too many books like you can with toys. How about some nice board books and you can also include a check for a savings account or contribution to his college fund.
Love the First Chair idea from Pottery Barn....we had one and it was soooo great. Perfect for that age to about 3 or 4. The cost is $100, but VERY durable, comfy and kids love it!
My daughter received a personalized name book (you can make them online). The animals collect all the letters to make her special one of a kind name. She loves to read this book and she is 5 now. makes her feel extra special.
How about a nice box (my mom bought one, but not sure from where) that you can put Birth Certificate, 1st Tooth and 1st Lock of hair in it? Ours has silver holders each with a spot to have the date engraved for each milestone. Nice to sit on the self, and we just got to put our 1st tooth in it!
Make a book on SnapFish (or another similar site) of photos from his first year. a keepsake he wil treasure. Plus you can put your own words on each page. Kids LOVE to look at pictures of themselves!!
Ask your daughter what he needs or if there is something she really wants him to have that you can buy.
As a mom, I wish more relatives would go easy on the toys and maybe get a savings bond. Sure, they can't play with it but from experience they end up with an over-abundance of toys that it's hard to manage.
My MIL always gets new grandchildren two things in their first year: a rocking chair and a step stool-- both with their name on it. I believe they came from Lillian Vernon. My daughter is 8 and still uses both. We thought these were really nice gifts.
Ask your daughter for gift suggestions. I have bought my grandkids the stuff their parents didn't want to spend money on (a really good wagon, bikes, trikes, game systems, etc). It's been great because the kids get what they want and it cuts down on them bugging their parents for expensive stuff.
Believe it or not clothing and shoes have always been a big hit with the kids. Just make sure you get the sizes first and include a gift receipt so they can exchange anything they want.
For the first grandchild in each family my mom has bought rocking chairs made by the Amish. My daughter is almost 8 and she still uses it when she can because her younger brother says that it is his chair and that she is too big for it.
For my son's first birthday he got a wagon from my dad. My daughter did not have one and I really wanted one.
Bath towles with their names on them is another idea that my mom did for all the smaller grandkids for Christmas.
