How to Shop for a Baby Shower Gift on a Budget

Summer is just days away, this means that mommies everywhere will be making plans for the arrival of their Thanksgiving and Christmas babies.

What this means for many, Baby Shower invites coming in from every direction. Baby Showers are fun to go to, but they can be stressful when trying to purchase a baby shower gift on a budget.

Of course we want to celebrate the new baby, but the shopping experience can be daunting! From my personal experience, walking into a baby store often means walking out with $25-$50 in gifts (if not more!). Babies are so much fun to shop for! But when there are several baby showers to attend over the Summer months, this can get expensive.

Here are a few ways that you can save some money on baby shower gifts and get the best bang for your buck.

• Use the registry as a guide – New moms often use the expertise of their friends, parents and the employees to create their baby registries. Go through the registry and see what the new mother has selected, then price shop around. By expanding your store options, you can grab some great deals on some the items that the new mom is interested in
• Shop Online – If you have time before the  baby shower, shopping online can really stretch your dollar. Grab an online coupon such as this 10% OFF with coupon code WORKOUT at BabyAge.com, shop clearance, sales and free shipping events to get a really great gift at a great price
• Shop the Necessities  – It’s easy to get caught up in all of the cute baby clothes, but chances are that the new mom has already been shopping garage sales and has been receiving hand me downs to fill the babies closet. Think about the basics that run out, things that baby will need lots of. For example, diapers. If you check up and down the aisles at stores, you will often find clearances on diapers that they have too many of. Even if they are size 3 or 4 diapers, grab them! Baby will need them eventually and this is a very much appreciated baby gift.
• Coupon Books – This may sound silly, but you can be really creative with this! Offer coupons for things such as baby sitting nights, a dinner cooked by you, a cleaning service or even just as a mommy helper. New moms get over whelmed and are sleep deprived, offer an after noon of coming over to watch baby while she naps, showers etc.
• Gift Cards  – Gift cards are great! Gift cards for places like Pizza Hut (so mom can have a night off from cooking), or to the baby store so mom can get more diapers. When baby comes home from the hospital there are lots of baby items that we all a sudden need, a gift card can help take the burden off of the new parents to gather those things.