Give the gift of gift receipts!
Baby showers are a definite bonus to being pregnant (beyond the obvious fact that you will be a parent soon, of course). There's nothing better than loved ones, friends, co-workers, etc. getting together to shower you and your baby with love . . . and much needed gear! However, the post-shower organization period can be a stressful time once you realize you were gifted four of that cute polka-dot blanket (as opposed to the one you registered for) and you're swimming in a sea of other repeat presents -- some of which were on your registry and many others that came from who-knows-what-store.
Let's put ourselves in the sensible (translation: flat and comfy) shoes of the Showered One (who is by no means ungrateful for everything you've done for her/him but wants to share this knowledge with as many peeps as possible).
Picture this: You and your BD/BM (Baby Daddy or Baby Mama) have sacrificed at least one entire pre-baby Saturday (which are now becoming alarmingly scarce) to waddle (or schlep, depending on where you are in your preggoness) around a (usually big box) store (or two if you're registered at multiple places). In one hand you carry a scanner gun, like what you may have used when registering for your wedding (back when you actually knew what you needed/wanted and could breeze through a store in an hour or two, firing that thing like you were the John Wayne of registries). In the other hand, you clutch a checklist that you've downloaded from your favorite baby website featuring the oh-so daunting "Things You and Your Baby Cannot Possibly Survive Without" (no pressure!). And stapled to that are a few pages of emails from family and friends who have supplied helpful lists of their own recommendations because, while you may know a cute Pack 'N Play pattern when you see one, there are a zillion brands of bottles and nipples and diapers and ointments, etc.; all the "little" but extremely important things, and you can use all the help you can get!
Exhausted yet?! Don't get me wrong, it's very fun and exciting to make a wish list for your little one. But it's truly a lot of work, especially when you're first time parents and have no idea what you're doing.
That little glimpse into the Showered Ones registration experience is exactly why you should ALWAYS give the gift of gift receipts! Because even if they've requested something in particular, they may get ten of it or they may want to replace it with something else. You will be making new Mamas and Dadas everywhere so very happy by simply asking the cashier for a gift receipt and dropping that sweet little ticket into the card. Trust me, it will be like you're giving them two gifts if/when the time comes for them to return or exchange it.
The gift receipt knows no limits. Gifting diapers? Tape the gift receipt right onto the box because you never know if those size "newborn" ones you purchased will need to be exchanged for a box of size ones. And, if you're one of those adventurous types who likes to avoid gift registries, this will be especially helpful, so that BM/BD don't have to put guesswork into the return of your gift OR so they know where they can go to purchase more of it, OR to recommend it to others because it's so fabulous.
I am SO sold on the power of gift receipts that I now give them with EVERYthing I gift. Ideally, the Showered One will keep and cherish your gift forever but if that is not the case, let's make it as easy on them as possible!
