Stumped Single Guy

Best Selling Baby Gifts - August 09

Did August go by in a blur? I mean a real blur.  Before I could blink I was in the middle and just after my blink September was here.  Yikes! My parents always said that the older we get the faster times goes.  And sure enough, someone has studied it.  It looks like we can blame our parents!

Wish it were not so but seems to be true.  But not so for babies, and children, right?

forbabygifts customers loved personalized baby blankets in August.  Out of the top eight baby gifts, half of them were blankets.  But of course, I first want to mention our best seller.  Not to my surprise, I guess, since it has been selling like hot-cakes for the past two months.  Drum roll..

1) New Arrival Collection© Personalized Baby Frame

By now I cannot be stumped, or acted stumped.  The people have spoken...again and again! *sigh*

As for the rest, here they are:

2) Daddy's Hand Keepsake Box: This one comes and goes, and probably because there were a lot of new daddies in August.  One of my friends Bob C. had a baby boy just a few days ago.  He announced it as 'it's a blue'. Cute way to announce!

3) Baby Alphabet Quilt: This one makes the best selling list every month.  It is one of Personal Creations best sellers.

4) Embroidered Baby Blanket by Baby Love© :  This adorable personalized baby blanket just made the list.  I added it forbabygifts in July, crossed my fingers it was a winner, and ta-dah! customers are loving it.

5) Pink Velour Embroidered Baby Blanket:  All I can say is, Of Course! Perfect traditional baby girl blanket with a stylish twist.  Look at the border.

6) Blue Velour Embroidered Baby Blanket: Don't forget the boys!!

7) Baby Girl Monogram Baby Frame: Customers put this one on the list.  First time ever in August.  If you got a sense of flair, or know new parents with an obvious personal flair, this personalized frame is for you.

8) Deluxe Baby Keepsake Kit: I would almost feel bad if this one dropped off the list.  My personal favorite!

- stumped single guy

Best New Baby Gifts 2009

Part II of my continuing saga to find the perfect baby gift.  Ah, that sounds dramatic! The truth is more simple,  In my last post, I asked

"I seem to be always talking about the best baby gifts, and it would seem like a natural question: for what occasion?

This week it is best new baby gifts.  These gifts are given mainly during two times.  Once the stork has delivered the new baby and once the new baby and parents go home.  Of course, you can get crazy and try to stop them before their arrival at the hospital or when they are driving home.  Honking your horn, swerving through traffic, maybe pretending to be a police officer (you will get arrested for this!) are all suggestion I would NOT recommend!

I dug deep into the baby gift vault to find these classics! Or put another way, I really like these gifts and hope you will too. 

1. Baby of the Year Photo Magazine Cover: From PersonalizationMall, I think this one should hang in every nursery.  It is just a great way to make the new baby a star!
2. New Baby Gift Starter Basket: From 1-800 Flowers, this basket is a great way to give the new parents a jump start on baby essentials.  Remember to buy several sizes up.  New moms find that new babies don't wait to grow out of new clothes!
3. Stork Boy Birth Certificate: From Bliss Living, another great piece of personalized decor for the nursery.  Each title is "an original artwork."  Also available in pink.
4. Lock of Hair Keeper: From My Bambino, a perfect keepsake gift so first curls.  Not only can you embroider it with the new baby's name, but it also comes with a baby comb and date journal.
5. Cupcake Onesies: From Bliss Living, these are just a cute way to give baby clothes.  They come in boxes of 2, 4 or 6.

-stumped single guy

Best Baby Shower Gifts 2009

I seem to be always talking about the best baby gifts, and it would seem like a natural question: for what occasion?

I am going to start with baby showers.  Another single guy friend of mine, and like me has zero babies, told me a couple of years ago, more babies are born in August than any other month! I usually do not believe him on such things, but he is right! Most babies are born in August. I guess the December holidays really brings out the best in us!!

So, a quick nod to the best baby shower gifts is due:

1. Deluxe Baby Keepsake Kit: A perfect gift especially if you do not know the sex of the baby yet.  It also makes a great family activity.  Goal: Do it without making the baby cry.
2. Large Yellow Bucket Bunch:  A cute way to give baby clothes.  They come in blue and pink as well.
3. Baby Alphabet Quilt: Caution! This is a tough gift to give if you do not have a name yet, but if you know he's a Johnny and she's a Suzy, this gift makes a wonderful addition to the nursery.
4. Baby Milestones Frames: Makes for great nursery decor, plus it can be personalized to capture all the new baby's best moments.
5. Silly Safari Diaper Cake: Every baby shower needs a diaper cake.  This one is really cute, so I added it, but there are many more diaper cakes that will fit the shower theme.

 These are just but a few gifts forbabygifts customers are buying for baby showers. 

-stumped single guy

Once Baby Sunflowers Now Toddlers

I have always wanted to grow the big sunflowers in the sometimes hot but always beautiful Colorado sun. I got the idea when I saw a huge sunflower growing in my neighbor's yard. I did not realize that they could get so big in Colorado, but once I saw it, I said, "I want one."

This year I finally got around to it, but as those of you living in Northern Colorado know, while the weather has been nice, the hail storms have been punishing. Through three storms, while the other plants suffered, my three seedlings endured the storm. They were survivors, and I believe now my will for them to survive nurtured them through.

Eventually I replanted them in the corner of the yard where the previous owner's landscaping is starting to give up and die. There I found places where the ground cover had been torn away. Lucky for me, the earthworms had been there turning clay into soil. They were still very young, so I worried if their weak roots would take hold. All but one dug in and took off. Since I had never grown anything but herbs before in Colorado, I was not sure if I had replanted them at the right time. But a few days ago I was able to get an up close cook at a few in front of a church. Mine are just a few days behind! I was so proud! Man, I am excited to see them grow. They can get up to 12 feet tall. If so, and I get a full bloom, I am going to harvest the sunflower seeds to snack on later.

Since I am single without any children, I wonder what I am missing by not raising my own brood. My friends with children seem stressed out, but I must not confuse that with dislike. Once a friend told me that she just loved being a mom. She had no aspirations to be anything else, only worked to support her little ones, and wished she could mother full time. I get great satisfaction from watching the sunflowers grow. I can only imagine what parents feel when they watch their children grow and blossom. - stumped single guy

New Dad Gifts Stink!

Here is my gripe for the day.  Finding new dad gifts really stinks, like a dirty baby diaper.  Okay, maybe not as bad.  Many merchants simple do not carry them, and the ones that do, carry very few, and of those few, I am not sure if I would buy them!

It is as if new dad is almost a side thought to the baby gift giving process.  Even Grandmothers have a better selection of gifts than dad.  Perhaps this is a commentary on how our society views dads, or how some bad dads have ruined it for all the good dads.  It only takes one apple to spoil the rest.

I do get it.  In fact, I thinking buying a new dad a gift could make him feel a little unsettled.  I think most new dads are the manly men who try to keep up the I-AM-A-MAN facade for the good ol' boys.   Just look beyond it everyone, including you, merchants.  Beyond that emotionally stunted facade is a man loving his children as much as new mom.  He wants a gift! Okay ones are hard to find, great ones nearly impossible!

Okay, but if you twist my arm....uncle! UNCLE! I can choose several I would want to receive if (and let us just pretend) I was a new dad.

While I understand new dad needs something to carry around all the diapers, I would not want the Diaper Dude Bag.  Just because you throw dude into the name does not change the fact that it is still a diaper bag.  Men have image problems too! Do not get me wrong, Land of Nod, this is a great idea, but please change the name!

I would want Gunmetal Pocket Watch but only if you engraved my new baby's name and birth day on it.  This is cool! cool! cool! Something I would keep forever and wear on nice occasions.  Absolutely!

I would also want the New Dad Cufflinks but only if I had a girl.  Again, my image problems.  Got to keep up appearances for the boys.  But with my new baby girl, I would not care.  In fact, I would challenge anyone to chuckle at me for wearing these.  Like any other dad, I would go down fighting to protect my little angel.  We men are so predictable!

So there is my gripe.  I would love to know if you have run into the same problem.  You wanted to buy a new dad a gift but 1) got uncomfortable about it? or 2) could not find any decent ones?

-stumped single guy

Five Best Selling Baby Gifts :. July 2009

Yes, I know, you are saying, 'but July isn't over!' I know, but I wanted to share with you the five best selling baby gifts so far in July. 

As of July 15, 2009, forbabygifts customers are still buying up the the New Arrival Personalized Baby Frame and Velour Embroidered Baby Blanket, but here is the surprise.  In my Personalized Baby Blankets post, I wondered if there were more baby boys being born than girls.  Baby girls have caught up. Grrrl Power! Personalized baby blanket shoppers are now buying up the Pink Velour Embroidered Baby Blanket.

As it was the best selling baby gift June 2009, the New Arrival Personalized Baby Frame is still a forbabygifts best seller in July.  Again, I love the personalized frames, but why not gift baskets, clothes, handprint kits, is anyone's guess.  forbabygifts customers continuously surprise!

On forbabygifts, I featured one photo of the frame.  I have included another.  My favorite of the two is the solid colored frame, but I can see how the white background with the colored lettering would be very appealing. 

But 'now for the rest of the story'....

(Drum Role Please) The Five Best Selling Baby Gifts in July 2009....as of July 15th

1. New Arrival Personalized Baby Frame
2. Velour Embroidered Baby Blanket
3. Deluxe Handprint Frame
4. Baby Alphabet Quilt
5. Ruffled Diaper Cover

#5 proves that the girls are catching up.  Watch out boys!

-stumped single guy

Cute Personalized Baby Frame:. I believe!

I have always been a big fan of PersonalizationMall.  When it comes to personalized baby gifts, they take the cake, get the blue ribbon - win the prize.

While I was adding new gifts to forbabygifts, I stumbled across the Christened with Faith Personalized Frame.  Now and again, when I see baby gifts, I get butterflies in my stomach.  It is not often, and like I have said before, I have a hard time picking the right ones.  More often than not, our customers always surprise me, month after month, and even daily.

But this cute personalized christening gift has made me believe once again I have found a winner.  What gets me is the solid pastal colors.  They are a nice break from the bright - bright pinks and blues.  And I love that PersonalazationMall has made them in neutral colors - green and tan. 

But more than the colors, if you look closely, there are four other things-items that make this baby frame special.  (In my humble opinion.)

1. The Lamb: Bottom left
2. The Cross: Bottom right
3. The Quote: Top.  PersonalizationMall says you can add their God quote or make one up
4. The Border: Around Edge

So let me count why this personalized frame is giving me goosebumps.  I have 5, but of course, you add the sixth with your favorite picture of the newest little angel. 

And of course, personalized frames make great christening or baptism gifts.  But the Christened with Faith Personalized Frame also makes a wonderful gift for the budding nursery.  Some new parents might even enjoy having this in their office since you can put whatever you want as a quote.  Guess what I am saying is that this is just a great baby gift!

Personalized Baby Blankets:. If in doubt, keep it simple

I guess there must be more new baby boys than new baby girls arriving by Stork because forbabygifts customers are buying up the Blue Velour Embroidered Baby Blanket.  Now a baby blanket does not surprise me in the least, and I have to admit, this one has been one of my favorites ever since I put it on the site.  It just seems like a classic: simple solid color with the baby's name embroidered on it. 

While it may be hard to the buy wild colored, crazy patterned baby blankets because you may have no idea what the nursery looks like, and you do NOT want to give the new parents a shock - make them say, "Oh, Chris bought this for him.  This is his style!" - basic baby blue or pink is a safe bet.  Why ruin a good thing!

PersonalizationMall says its 'two layers of ultra-soft".  Warm, cozy and soft! Check out the colored ruffled edges.  Very Cute, and practical too - Babies love to pull and suck on edges, even bundle the edges up and hold them up close as they work on a finger or two, until the blankie is nearly worn through!  It is nice the ruffles are baby finger size.  Very thoughtful feature.

But the best part is the personalization, and PersonalizationMall offers it FREE with every purchase, every day, all year long.  Of course, the Velour Embroidered Baby Blanket is available in pink. Many lucky parents got a girl, or maybe even better, one of each, or - well, you get it.

Best Selling Baby Gift - June 2009

Now, I am definitely stumped by June 2009's best selling baby gift.  Our customers chose the New Arrival Personalized Baby Frame over any other gift.  This one outsold the others almost 2 to 1.  There must have been a lot of new arrivals in June.  Or, 'June is busting out all over!'  While it would not have been my first pick, I must give a nod to my customers for surprising me with a great pick.  (I am not a picture frame fella.)

Here are some others.  I love this one - Infant Romper Sports Jersey, but this would be a perfect gift for single guy to give a new baby.  It has macho written all over it, and it stays away from the bows, ribbons, rattles, and diapers!  Married men may get roped into putting their names on the cuter gifts their wives pick out, but we single guys are on our own.  Lucky Men!

The First Tooth and Curl Set does not surprise me in the least.  This is a very popular personalized gift for baby.  And it sells all year round, although I am surprised it reached the top 10 for June.  Again, June is busting out.  The Storks are tired! 

And for new moms, PersonalizationMall's My Little Brag Book Photo Album takes the #1 best seller spot.  Brag books are a great way for new moms to show off her favorite baby pictures.  Easy to organize, easy to pack, easy to travel!

So it appears what I found out in my Baby Gift Survey post, personalized gifts are indeed the gifts people love to give the most to new babies.  In fact, all but one gift is a personalized gift.  You can see for yourself: Best Selling Baby Gifts June 2009

-stumped single guy

The Silver Baby Spoon and its Dark History

In my last post I pondered the secret symbolism of the silver baby cup. I wondered at its meaning, and being unable to find one through article research, I created my own based on religious and dream symbolism. 

But the cup has a close relative: the silver baby spoon.  And like the cup it is a traditional gift new babies receive, especially as a christening or baptism gift.   But I did not know the tradition, its history.  We have all heard “Born with a silver spoon in his mouth.”  We know that means she was born wealthy, a bit more fortunate than the rest, and she would probably live a life like Ricky in Silver Spoons or a modern day Paris Hilton.

 

But this time I was very fortunate to find a great article from MotherPie that explains the tradition of the silver baby spoon.   The tradition exists “because mouthing silver helped the baby survive.”  The article goes on to say, “Silver disrupts bacteria cells permanently” and was used to “preserve food and water.”  (read full article).

 

So the tradition of giving a silver baby spoon as a keepsake gift is based on survival.  And those with the most tended to survive the most, and this holds true even today.  But the silver baby spoon has a dark history, and it seems to me the tradition would have stopped as civilization advanced.  But why does the tradition continue? I can only at best ponder:

Perhaps we give the silver baby spoon because of our unconscious drive to preserve life.  Silver symbolizes protection, and a spoon is what we use to nourish ourselves.   We understand that life is very fragile- especially for a brand new baby.  But we also know that fragile breaks.  With protection and nourishment, a new life will grow strong.  The silver baby spoon represents this, and by giving it we send our hopes and wishes the newest baby will be protected and nourished for her entire life.

And of course, we give the silver baby spoon for its lighter meaning:  We hope the new baby’s life will be fortunate and wealthy.   It is our way of increasing luck, knocking on wood, or stacking the deck.  We may even hope the new baby will grow up to be the next Bill Gates so that we may become more fortunate and wealthy.  And all because of a silver baby spoon!