Question about giving a gift to a mom trying to go green?
A friend of mine is due in about 7 weeks. Her baby shower is in 3 weeks.
I noticed on her invite she requested ‘no plastic toys’. Her registry is almost entirely organic or green choices. She still has rubber bottle nipples but they are ‘free’ from all the harmful plastic additives. The onesies she registered for are either bamboo or organic cotton. She registered for an organic layette though I don’t think her crib set is organic cotton.
She herself does not live ‘green’ and her husband doesn’t either (if they were die-hard organic-only people I’d understand more).
Here is my problem. I was going to hand-paint some onesies for her. I already bought them, they are 100% cotton, but not ‘organic’ cotton. I can buy the ones she registered for and paint those, but I’m concerned she is going to freak out about the paint being on them (the paint is labeled as non-toxic and made in the USA – its intended for fabrics).
I’m sure she’ll be polite but I don’t want to waste my time, money and energy if she’s going to smile then not use them because they are ‘tainted’.
I am also an avid knitter. I find that most parents appreciate some kind of poly blend yarn on baby blankets because it makes them machine washable and dryable. 100% cotton yarn is NOT soft and cuddly.
I was planning on giving her a hand-knit blanket as well.
Now I don’t know what to do…..
I kind of think this is an ‘ideal’ she is trying to meet, but will quickly abandon once her kid is here. I understand about being strict about the food they consume, but unless its a lifestyle choice for yourself, then organic cotton clothing doesn’t seem to be any safer to me.
I don’t know what to do. I don’t know her well enough to call and ask since I’m afraid I’ll insult her. I LOVE making this stuff and its very cute and I’ve always gotten tons of thanks… but now I’m afraid to give her anything I make.
Help?
Filed under: Organic Baby Clothes
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i thnk that gesture is really really sweet. my husband and i were really trying to "be green" for our baby. we, however, do live a pretty "green" lifestyle. or, we did, until we had a baby. we registered for green things only too. we used reusable diapers, organic body soaps, and asked for 100% organic cotton clothes. (side note: 100% organic cotton white onsies are super super soft…mmMMMMmm). with all that said, about 10 seconds after our son was born and swiftly trucked off to the NICU all that went out the window. They put him in Huggies and gave him Enfamil when I wasn’t there to BFeed him. When we finally got him home, we didn’t care about using resusable diapers or organic whatever. She will be proud to get as much sleep as she can and "green" is not conveinent for that…trust me.
with all that said, she should appreciate the hand painted onsies that you are making for her. if she doesn’t immediately… i can PROMISE she will come back to you a couple of weeks after the baby is born and tell you how much she loves them. she will eventually get off her "green" high horse. i know i did.
Could you possibly knit her something she can hang like the child’s name or an animal..If it were me I would just give her a gift certificate and not waste my time on someone who is so picky.
I think that’s totally sweet of you to want to make something personal. But I don’t think it’s worth it to risk her thinking you don’t respect her wishes (however impractical they may be). You know how it is to be a new mom – I’m sure she has the best intentions, as do you.
What about making her some sort of artwork so the baby won’t necessarily come in contact with anything that will stress her out? Maybe a handmade journal or photo album? Clothes are lovely, but babies grow so quickly – it would be nice to have something lasting.
Or what about knitting her something made with bamboo? My mother-in-law knitted us a blanket made with a bamboo/cotton blend and it’s really nice and soft.