by Sebastian Ramshackle III

Created on: April 05, 2007   Last Updated: May 23, 2012

So, the great day has arrived. A new mom has received the greatest gift of all - a beautiful, bouncing baby. Your first thought, after hearing that both are well, is to give the new mother something to show that you share her happiness and let her know that you've been thinking about her, her new baby and the baby's father. What are you going to choose to give the new parent?

The most important thing to remember in choosing a present for a new mother, even more important than whether the baby's a boy or a girl, is that there are two people involved here, baby and Mum, so try to choose something for each of them. Let's think about the baby first.

For the baby, buy something really nice for her or him to wear. Select something that the parent won't have bought because they know they'll only get a few weeks wear out of it. Even better, and this will save you money, if you're good with your hands knit or crochet something. The parents will really treasure that. This is something that's very good for a grandmother to do, and who knows, it could end up as a family heirloom!

If you want to look well beyond the immediate future, another possibility is to buy a bottle of vintage champagne or other excellent wine, dated in the current year, that is the year of the baby's birth, and give it with strict instructions that it's not to be opened until the new baby has reached its majority. This is a present that will be remembered every time the cupboard in which it's kept is opened and it will be the centre piece of the baby's 18th or 21st birthday party when it is opened. This is another present that really will be remembered.

For the mum, buy something which is absolutely useless in practical terms. Don't buy anything that will remind her of the weight she's put on during pregnancy. That's absolutely vital! Instead, get a bottle of expensive perfume, a child-related sculpture for the mantelpiece, a day-pass to a spa, something to let her spoil herself with - you get the idea.

Try making sure that you deliver your presents in person and at a time when the baby will be awake. You'll expect to be able to give the baby your present and the parents will want you to be able to do it. So, don't go round late in the evening. Equally, don't go round too early in the morning because parents tend to have been up during the night when they've got a new baby. They won't be at their best then and won't thank you for having to answer the door in their 'early-morning' faces!

Best of all, if you're mum's partner, parent, sibling or other, older, child, remember to tell her you love her and the new baby. That's worth more than all the other things she'll get and she'll remember it forever.

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