If you’re a teacher or are planning a baby shower for a teacher, a back-to-school themed baby shower will surely make the grade. To help inspire some ideas for a clever shower, we’ve found some school themed décor and gift ideas that will pass the test with flying colors.
Décor:
Chalkboards, apples, and notebooks make smart accents for a shower. (Image courtesy of Disney Baby)
Cookies & milk are the perfect after-school snack and also make sweet treats for a baby shower. (Image courtesy of About.com)
We’d give an “A” for effort for this adorable book-themed baby shower cake. (Image courtesy of Cakes by Joanna)
Personalized Baby Gifts:
School supply themed personalized onesies make an adorable gift for the future star pupil. (Shown: Chummy Crayons and Plaid Pocket personalized onesies)
This DIY ruler frame can be personalized with a photo or turned into wall art by inserting a custom poem or saying, or stenciling baby’s name in a nice font. Check out the step-by-step here on A Little Tipsy blog.
Baby will get an early start on learning his or her ABC’s with a personalized alphabet poster.
Have you ever thrown a back-to-school themed shower? We’d love to hear how you created the theme in the comments below.
Top 5 On the Go 1st Birthday Gifts
By their first birthday, most little ones are raring to go, whether on their hands and knees or up and moving on two feet. Gifts that are just as mobile or are inspired by cars, trucks, and other moving vehicles, make great 1st birthday gifts that will keep your birthday boy or girl on the go.
We’ve found 5 fun options that would make ideal gifts for a 1st birthday.
Pull Back Racing Bugs (Fat Brain Toys)
Personalized onesies and 1st birthday shirts
Radio Flyer Classic Walker Wagon (Amazon.com)
Mickey Mouse 4-in-1 Ride On (Toys ‘R Us)
Personalized Race Car Piggy Bank (Pig Patrol on Etsy)
What on-the-go themed unique baby gifts did your one-year-old receive?
Naming Trend of the Week: One Syllable Boys Names
Last week we talked about the appeal of one syllable names and highlighted some of our favorite girl’s names, so it’s only fair we give some love to our favorite one syllable boy’s names.
We’re fans of Cole, Finn, Quinn, and Nate, as well as many others, so we rounded up some additional one syllable names that would look great on our big brother shirts.
Retro names like Ford, Gus, George, and Bruce are having a comeback, so boys with these names would look hip wearing a Retro Style Big Brother T shirt, while the Chic Style or Modern Fun big brother shirts would work with trendier names like Cruz, Ash, Chase, and West.
The Rock On Big Brother T shirt is perfect for boys with cool names inspired by music and musicians, like Rock, Van (Morrison), Jon (Bon Jovi), Prince, Lou or Reed, while the Batter Up Big Brother T shirt is ideal for baseball player inspired names like Joe (DiMaggio), Mark (McGwire), Wade (Boggs), and Cal (Ripken, Jr).
Short, but solid names, like Max, Hank, Ray, and Rod require big brother shirts that are as equally rough and tumble as the boys with these monikers. (Shown: Dig In Big Brother T shirt, Under Construction and Busy Bulldozer big brother shirts)
Does your baby boy have a one syllable name? Which big brother t shirt best fits his personality?
Color Trend Pink & Orange Personalized Baby Gifts
There is no doubt, we love personalized baby gifts! We also love lots of color and right now we are really into a combination of pink and orange. It’s bright, fun, and bold, which we think is perfect when choosing unique baby gifts for baby showers, 1st birthdays, or even as baptism gifts.
Here are some punchy pink and orange options for personalized baby gifts:
For a gift that will growth with them, we love giving little ones their own personalized growth charts. (shown: Growing Giraffes personalized growth chart, Sprinkled Flowers and Butterfly Kisses personalized growth charts)
A cuddly blanket with their name on it, like think pink and orange dot one from Blueberry Junkie on ArtFire, will be lovingly used and snuggled with for years.
Playful pillows shaped in the little one’s first and/or last initial add a sophisticated touch to nursery décor. (image courtesy of Bed Bath & Beyond)
Personalized pink and orange 1st birthday shirts will be proudly worn on their big day. (shown: Happy To Be and Fun To Be One 1st Birthday Shirts)
Add a splash of color to bath time with a personalized pink & orange terry cloth robe. (Image courtesy of Bespoke Custom Gifts)
Which personalized baby gifts are your go-to fave – a personalized growth chart, clothing, blanket, etc?
Cool Name of the Week: Phoebe
For anyone who was a fan of Friends, the name Phoebe connotes a sweet, slightly kooky, yet totally lovable girl. But the name has a very long history, with mentions in mythology and the Bible, as well as popular literature. Greek for shining, bright, brilliant, Phoebe is our Cool Name of the Week.
Big sister shirts with designs that symbolize the meaning or history of the name would make perfect gifts for any Phoebe.
The bird on the Tweet Tweet Big Sister Tshirt is similar to the Phoebe bird, a member of the Tyrant Flycatcher family.
Phoebe was the name of one of the mythological Titans, as well as an Amazon who fought Heracles, so a girl with this strong moniker would be perfectly suited to big sister shirts with bold designs, like the Super Sister Big Sister Tshirt or Stamped Style Big Sister Tshirt.
Brightly colored big sister shirts are ideal for the Phoebe who loves to shine. (shown: Taped Up Big Sister Tshirt, Love to Sketch and Stitched Style big sister shirts)
Do you have a Phoebe? Which of these big sister shirts best fits her personality?
Décor Trend: Retro Design
Though babies hold so much promise for the future, there’s nothing wrong with looking to the past for inspiration when decorating a nursery. We found some rooms that bring the retro appeal of 1930’s/40’s, 50’s/60’s, and 70’s and paired them with our personalized growth charts that pay homage to the style of those eras while remaining modern at the same time.
Traveling circuses brought a lot of color and excitement to the 1930’s and 40’s, and we love how this nursery evokes the feeling of life under the big top, like our brand new Vintage Circus personalized growth chart. (Image courtesy of Roomzaar)
We love the nostalgia of the preppy 1950’s and ‘60’s when star athletes and cheerleaders were crazy cool, and vintage sports themed nurseries accented with Perfect Pennant and Preppy Pennant personalized growth charts would make your little’s pad “the most.” (Image courtesy of Roomzaar)
Though this rainbow-bright nursery was originally featured in Better Homes & Gardens in 1975, we still totally dig this design for a nursery and would accent it with the My Favorites personalized growth chart. (Image found on Apartment Therapy)
Which decade of design is your favorite and which of our personalized growth charts would best highlight that time period?
Baby Shower theme: Aqua
Perfectly pretty alone or paired with a range of colors, aqua is a cool color option for baby showers for boys, girls, or gender neutral parties, especially in the heat of August. Either in light, soothing shades or bright, bold tones, it’s easy to be creative with this watery hue.
We rounded up some inspiration for aqua baby shower décor ideas, as well as unique baby gifts.
Décor & Party Elements:
Aqua and red get a playful touch with polka dots (Image found on Kara’s Party Ideas blog)
Lots of texture and pattern give this green and aqua shower lots of personality (Image courtesy of Lil Luna blog)
Soft aquas and oranges create a tranquil shower setting (Image courtesy of Lovely Little Details)
Aqua treats, like punch (Eat Drink Pretty blog), cookies (SP Cookie Queen), and cakes (Sweet Art by Becky) add a sweet touch.
Personalized Baby Gifts:
Personalized travel changing pad (Luna and Bean)
Personalized Onesies
Personalized baby blanket (Funny Farm Creations)
Personalized alphabet poster
Do you prefer cool or bright shades of aqua for a baby shower?
Cool Name of the Week: Leo
Babies born between July 23 and August 22 are born under the sign of Leo, which astrologists say are known to be creative, idealistic, warm-hearted, and strong leaders. For boys, Leo also makes a pretty cool name, which is why we’ve chosen it as our Cool Name of the Week! Leo, Latin for lion, is a strong name by itself and is equally nice as a shortened version of Leonard/Leonardo, which is German for brave as a lion.
Here are some personalized onesies and big brother shirts ideal for Leos.
Perfect for a little Leo, the Merry Menagerie Big Brother Tshirt features a happy lion cub.
Have a little Leonardo da Vinci on your hands? Give him the drawing-inspired designs of the Love to Sketch Big Brother Tshirt or Playful Doodles Big Brother Tshirt to further encourage his artistic interests.
Do you have a Leo?With the heart of a lion, newborn Leos can wear theirs on their personalized onesies. (shown: I Love Grandma, I Love Dad, I Love (You Pick))
Naming Trend of the Week: One-Syllable Girl Names
People seem to get more and more creative with their children’s names, but sometimes a short and sweet name says it all. We’re big fans of the one syllable name, which somehow are able to convey a lot of meaning or style even in their simplicity.
We’ve picked some of our favorite one-syllable girl names and matched them with some big sister shirts.
Floral designed big sister shirts are ideal for a Rose, Fern, Sage, or Dale. (shown: Sunny Flower, Flower Power, and Blooms)
The Chic Style Big Sister Tshirt would be a great fit for a hiply named Sloane, Blake, Blair, or Reese.
For sisters with uplifting one syllable names, like Hope, Faith, Grace, and Joy, a perfect pick would be the Over the Rainbow Big Sister Tshirt.
Which of these big sister shirts would you choose for your one-syllable named girl?
Red Personalized Baby Gifts
Whenever anyone asks us what to get for a baby shower gift, we can’t help ourselves, we ALWAYS say “personalized baby gifts!” Personalized baby gifts are thoughtful and made just for the new little one, so the new parents will really cherish them.
To help make your gift-giving search a bit easier, we’ve pulled together several options here. Oh and because we love themes too, all of these unique baby gifts are red because it’s summer and red is one hot color!
Personalized baby blankie from My Lil Luv Bug on Etsy
Monogrammed pacifier holder from Lil Mama on Etsy
Personalized red baby shoes from Chasing Fireflies
Personalized baby onesies (shown: Superhero Shield, Best Mom Ever, I Love Grandpa)
Which of these red personalized baby gifts is your fave?
