How to Create an Easter Basket for a Baby

A baby is too young to grasp the concept of the Easter bunny - much less the larger meaning of the holiday - but he'll love plunging his hands into a basket you've filled just for him.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Teething Toys
• Children's Books
• Wicker Baskets
• Stuffed Animals

1. Choose a basket that's large enough and attractive enough to grace the baby's room long after Easter, whether to corral his toys or hold supplies on his changing table.
2. Line the basket with a soft baby blanket or quilt instead of artificial grass.
3. Think tactile when you shop for contents. Look for soft, cuddly stuffed bunnies, chicks, lambs or eggs.
4. Include a toy or two the baby can safely chew on; a baby needs all the oral gratification he can get when he's growing a crop of new teeth. Choose hard rubber toys with no sharp edges and no small parts that could come off in the baby's mouth.
5. Tuck in a couple of books: one with thick, colorful pages the baby can turn himself (soon if not now); and one for his parents to read aloud at bedtime.
6. Remember that grownups enjoy visits from the Easter bunny, too. Make a gift certificate for the baby's parents, redeemable for a night of baby-sitting services, either your own or those of a hired sitter, and nestle it into the basket among the toys and books.

Tips & Warnings

• When you choose books for reading aloud, think beyond babyhood. Though he won't understand the words now, the lulling sound of his parents reading a classic like "Winnie the Pooh," "Charlotte's Web" or "The Wind in the Willows" will lodge itself in a baby's mind and work its magic in years to come.
• Remember that everything a baby can grab onto will find its way to his mouth. Don't put anything into the basket that's small enough to be swallowed, including gumdrops, jelly beans and chocolate eggs. Those goodies can wait until he's a little older.