Need Present Ideas for Neice

Well this one hasn't been mentioned but I really love it and so does my DD who is 12. anyways I have, since age one, bought her figurines by Josef Originals called birthday girls.. They have 1-21... they aren't horribly expensive (15-30 depending on year) and like I said my DD cherishes them and looks forward to receiving them each year... So maybe your niece will as well :) I remember growing up a friend had them as well and I wished my parents had commemorated my b-day with them...anyhow, here's a link to see what they are http://www.hbcornerstore.com/josbirdol.html certainly soemthign you can elect to do every year or just this once... HTH Becky

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Lots of good ideas on here. I always like to give things related to music. We got our son a xylophone (a really great one from Spielwerk that has a really pleasant sound), which is one of the only things we've ever bought for him, and it's wonderful. His grandpa got him this awesome drum with other instruments that is made by Parents magazine, and it is also pretty much the biggest hit ever. I also give kids cds sometimes. :)

1 mom found this helpful

What about a meaningful book? I have Usborne Books and have many in stock. One of my favorites for that age is "Baby and Toddler Treasury." It has a little scrapbook, stories, nursery rymes, finger plays, and some pages for teaching colors, numbers ect. http://www.myubam.com/ecommerce/details.asp?sid=N2496&amp... If your interested in seeing in in person let me know. I have at least 100 books in stock and live in Aumsville but can meet in Salem.

A monkey sock doll. My mother got one for my granddaughter and it was a big hit. Soft and cuddly. Non toxic. Etc.

I think the savings bond/account idea is great, (as is the pass to the zoo) but if you want to also give her something physical that she can enjoy now, how about a couple of books?

i have bought keep sake items/ jewelry from overstock.com and love the quality.. The braclets are so cute and very special..
L.

Another idea is a membership to the zoo, children's museum or someplace like that...my family has always been a big fan of giving experiences. She can go again and again, plus it helps her learn and grow.

Your niece is turning ONE...anything meaningful will only be so to her parents at this time and not so much to her. If she (or her parents) are able to keep whatever you get her in good condition until she is say 4 - 8, then she may have the type of feelings for the item(s) you get her now.

You can do a lot of different things that you may want her to grow into later in life and maybe have some monetary value. You could get her a different gem stone (you can get a decent quality cut, but unset gem for reasonable prices (not diamonds or emeralds as they rate among the more expensive and harder to get good quality of) This collection could become seriously nice pieces of jewelry when she is much older and she will always know you gave the pieces to her...

You can start a coin collection for her...There is currently one being done on the preside ts of the us, and includes a binder to keep them in and a short BIO on each the presidents... This could be worth something one day and may be a collection she wants to add to on her own when she is older, there are many times of coins both difficult and easy to get...

The figurines another mom suggests might be nice too, especially if they are fine porcelain and made by a person or company worth collecting (i.e Lladro -sp?)...

You could make something that is worth saving, a blanket, clothing, a toy, etc.

otherwise, get her an age appropriate toy or doll and if she plays with it a lot you will know that you met your goal now of something meaningful...

Please keep in mind through all of it, that meaningful to you may not be so to another person...

Good Luck and I hope you find what you are looking for... ;-)

Maybe a piggy bank of her very own with some change in it. She will soon start to learn about "money" and it will be fun for her to ask grandma and grandpa for their loose change when they come over (with help from them of course) we wouldnt want her to try and eat the coins. I know you can get some really cute ones these days even one with her name on it...Good luck!

-- a little gold bracelet??? -- she can wear it now- and later it can be used as a picture frame for a baby picture of her-- ( I did that with a similar gift to my daughter- now aged 38---- whew - how did that happen?)

Blessings,
J. aka - Old Mom

My brothers helped us to start a college savings account for my son on his first birthday. They aslo gave him a piggy bank for him to collect coins in throughout the year. Now (he just turned 4), we open up his piggy bank around his birthday each year, roll all of the coins, and then deposit most of it into a regular bank account. He also gets to keep $10.00 to buy himself something from the toystore. He loves it! And I have been surprised that each year his piggy bank total is close to $50.00. Also, my brothers continue to put money in his college savings account (one does an automatic withdraw from his paycheck for $15.00 each month...doesn't hurt him but really adds up over the long haul).

Maybe someone already said this (sorry I didn't read through all the responses) But we started a savings account in our neice's name when she turned 1 and we put money into it for birthdays and holidays with my other sister (her other aunt) I figure that by the time she is old enough to really want to use the money (or old enough that her mom will let her!) there will be enough money in there to do something pretty fun with!

Someone got us, as a baby present, a nice piggy bank. I like it - my daughter will not only have it for a while, but we work on saving for her with it. (It is quite big, so we put in random bills as well as coins.) At two she delights in putting change in it, so sometimes when we have extra change she can use it. In this way, she enjoys the piggy bank now, as much as i appreciate it and hope she'll have it into the future.

When our niece and nephew were young, we began a tradition of giving them a one ounce silver round (like a coin, but just pure silver)for each year of age. We had purchased a large amount of silver rounds with different designs on them. They got one on their first birthday, two on their second, three on their third, and so on until they turned 18. At that point, they had 171 ounces of silver. The gift could be something other than silver, but our idea was to give a tangible asset that tended to hold or increase in value. We also gave them a toy, and as they got older, clothes, CD's, or other things that they could use immediately.

THREE ideas:
1) Savings bond? If you spent $50 on it, it could be worth double that when the time is right.

2) Charm bracelet with a charm or two.

3) A nice tea set

go with the savings bond, my son got one when he was a baby and at age nine he thinks it's great that Grandma and Grandpa gave him this money (for college as he puts it) - I think it makes him feel important that he has this special money for his future.

Hi!
I have 4 boys so......youngest just became a teen BUT I always tried to get presents for family/relatives the kind of thing I would appreciate for my children. Lots of families have some of the same likes,etc.
Best Jan

U.S. Savings Bonds make a nice gift for young ones who dont really need anything. You can spend $50 and get a face value bond of $100 - which when it matures, will actually be worth quite alot more than that. You can get them at any bank.

A photo book of her favorite things and family. Either heat transfer it on fabric and sew up a book or put the prints on a board book with scrapbook paper for the background and use clear contact paper to cover it so it is baby proof. I made one for my daughter and it is still her favorite book 2 years later.

How about a family pass to the local zoo or children's museum?

Consider purchasing a savings bond or establishing a college savings account for her (you can then make a deposit every year).

Open a savings account or get her a savings bond. Today it is so expensive to send children to school so having an account started early will help ensure this child has an opportunity at an education. My friends and grandparents give money to the college savings account or savings bonds instead of gifts most years and it is a bit of reassurance to know there is some money being set aside for our children's future. We are not able to save much for them right now.

Good luck>
C.

I have a three year old daughter. One thing that she got for her first birthday that I thought was cool was a jewelry box. It is a very nice jewelry box that she can use for her whole life.

A magazine gift subscription can be updated as years go by for age appropriateness and this way she gets her own mail every month, or so.

There are many good magazines out there for her age, a couple: Wild Baby Animals or Baby Bug.

Have fun deciding!
D.

Personalized items are great. There are lots of cheap books out there, but for our daughter's 2nd birthday (which was a bookworm party) we got her a wonderful book from this company: http://www.iseeme.com/
Other things we have done are engraved silver plate and cup (I don't see them on Pottery Barn Kids' site any more but they have tons of other personalized items - http://www.potterybarnkids.com ).
Another idea is jewelry for her to keep. My aunt gave our daughter a sweet little bracelet with her first initial on it. It is made for kids, but she only gets to wear once in awhile. It's really more for a keepsake.