by Charlotte Howard

Created on: June 11, 2008   Last Updated: June 20, 2008

It is a time when you can celebrate being parents, and if it is his first of many Father's Days then it is an extra special day this year. Making it a special time to remember may seem important, but it is also just as important to give him a memento of the day, something he can tresure. The chances are your little one will be too young to actually make a gift themselves, and you may feel like anything you make won't really be special enough, so here are a few ideas of gifts that you can give your first time father.

1. Photograph - there are plenty of studios around where you can have a professional photograph taken of your child and placed in a nice frame. You could have a large copy to keep in your front room or by your bed, but make sure you have some smaller copies printed too so that Dad can put one in his wallet and carry it around with him where ever he goes, and one in a smaller frame to keep on his desk at work.

2. Hand / foot prints - you can buy special sets with modelling clay in them to take a print of your child's hand or foot. They set very quickly and can be placed inside a beautiful frame. You could also use paint, and perhaps find a nice poem to write underneath it. These little reminders are often smiled upon years later once the child has grown up. It is nice to see how much your child has grown and remember back to when they are small.

3. Personalized t-shirt - there are many websites where you can order a personalized or sloganed t-shirt. You can even buy matching pairs so that he can match his child.

4. Enscribed watch - a watch represents the time that has passed and the time yet to come. You can have the date enscribed on the back with a short loving message and your child's name; something along the lines of: "Happy Father's Day 2008, Lots of love Baby."

5. A day out - there are usually plenty of events happening on Father's Day. Why not take him along to somewhere that all Father's are being celebrated? Make sure you take a camera and camcorder with you to record the special memories that will be created. Spending time as a family is extremely important, especially if Dad tends to spend the week at work and hardly gets to see his child.

If you are really stuck on a budget you could make him a special book with photographs of your baby's life so far, with plenty of reminders of days out, celebrations etc. Scrapbooks are a good way of keeping memories safe and are fun to make.

Learn more about this author, Charlotte Howard.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.