How to Choose Baby Gifts for Preemies

Baby gifts are fun to buy. Although regular baby gifts are fine to give when a baby is born early, there are special considerations to make when choosing a gift for a baby that is born prematurely.

Instructions

1. Look for tiny sleepers and other clothes. The clothes at your local department store may be too big for this tiny babe so you may need to find a specialty shop. Choose clothes with snaps instead of zippers so the parents can easily feed intensive care unit monitor wires between the snaps.

2. Find a "kangaroo care" top. These stretchy bands allow the parents to hold their preemie next to their skin while having their hands free. This skin-to-skin contact is highly recommended to help premature babies grow and thrive.

3. Provide the baby's lunch. Often doctors prescribe a special high-calorie formula to help the preemie gain weight. This often-expensive formula makes an excellent baby gift.

4. Wrap up a baby monitor with a movement sensor. These monitors not only let the parents hear their preemie's cries, it also sounds an alarm if the baby stops breathing or is too still. Since premature babies suffer from a higher risk of SIDS, this monitor will let the parents sleep better at night.

5. Buy a car bed. Preemies weighing less than 5 pounds may need special a car bed that allows the baby to lay down instead of being propped up in a regular car seat. The more vertical position of a regular car seat can make it difficult for the baby to breathe.

6. Pamper the parents. Parents of preemies often spend long hours in the hospital and so have little time to take care of themselves. Gift certificates for a massage or visit to a spa will let them relax and rejuvenate.