Presents for Babies

I feel like everyone I know is having a baby or just had a baby. My roommate from college (not Mary) is expecting her second and our friends Al and Mary (not coblogger Mary) just had their first and our nephew is now three months old. All of these wee people need presents because it's nice to welcome wee people to the world. It is very difficult to find something nice that isn't a Woombie, or a Boppy, or a Bumbo, and isn't plastic that shrieks and could splinter and get lodged on someone's septum (not to knock the Woombie, I'm a nanny and that thing is the bestest, it's just very boring and ugly). Also difficult if you are a nanny and poor. Here are some of my collected favourites

Super Awesome Monkey, $68.00 - The Nanny-ee baby has this monkey and she is totally non-plussed by it's awesomeness. Maybe when she is not six months old she will be cooler and understand that it's super stylish and cuddleable. I love it.

I've been planning to make one of these mobiles for forever. Unfortunately for the babies of this world, no one is getting one until I have one to look at while I got to sleep.

City In A Bag, $14.00 - This is very much a present for mummies and daddies to be impressed by. I don't know that babies care whether or not they have London blocks or super boring blocks. In defense of the London blocks they would look pretty rad on a grown ups bookshelf so they can grow with baby?

Bookplates, $6.00 - When I was little I had really ugly Mickey Mouse bookplates and some of my books still have the dancing Mickey and my super cute eight year old handwriting proclaiming that THIS BOOK IS HANNAH'S. I think they are mega charming. I've been plotting to print out the Martha Stewart ones and start sticking them in books I give as gifts.

I feel as though all little people need Goodnight Moon and The Runaway Bunny but everyone knows that babies need those so I'm always concerned that someone else has already gotten there first. Ditto Pat the Bunny. My favourite books to read are Moo Ba LALALA by Sandra Boynton (and I remember laughing like a maniac at it when I was wee) and In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak (maybe for slightly older people but so wonderful although the interwebs has just informed me that the naked wee boy is controversial and some people might take issue with a naked baby in the bread dough) and then the absolutely lovely Gorilla by Anthony Browne about a little girl called Hannah who's favourite animal is gorillas (who does THAT remind you of? AND published by the company I interned for during college. Baby can think of me every time it reads).

Do you have any go to baby gifts?