Special Gift to Expected Dad

I have 2 ideas
The first is a book called So you're going to be a dad by Peter Downey. It talk about fastherhood in a very funny way. My husband really like it.
The second I made my husband a shirt using iron on sheet. It said 1st time dad with the year below it. I left enough room so that when my daughter was born there there was space for her footprints. He got to wear it to work and show off.

For my first son, I got my husband a Daddy's diapering "tool" belt with all the necessary goodies - I saw several premade ones but chose to make it myself. With my second son, I got matching shirts for all three boys (Papa and the two brothers) each was royal blue and a sewed red capes on each and had their names embroidered on them - "The Dad", etc. They all looked like awesome superheroes. Good luck deciding on the perfect gift.

Last year (when I was pregnant with #2) I made my daddy-to-be a cd with songs geared towards fatherhood. He loved it! It took a long time to get a good list going but I ended up with 12 songs and it works out well.

What about the Willow Tree figurine called new dad?

I think all the other ideas are great and I didn't want to repeat any of them. I also wanted to mention a book I got my husband for his first Father's Day, which was two weeks after my son was born, it is called "Daddy Hugs". My son is now 2 1/2 and it's one of his favorite books and it's funny now b/c he sometimes only lets Daddy read it. He walks around saying "hugs, hugs" when he wants to hear the book. I know my husband loves it too.

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Hi C.! I think I have the perfect little gift for you. I bought this for my husband for his 1st father's day and he really liked it. There is a line of figurines by Willow Tree and there is one with a man holding a newborn in his lap. It is simple yet it says it all :-) This line looks like carved wood so it is nice and masculine! It is a great gift for the new father and very reasonably priced! Good luck :-)

What about a really nice journal with a special pen. We have a journal for my husband that we write in every Father's Day. In the beginning I wrote special memories about him and the kids throughout the year. As the kids grew, I had them tell me what makes their dad so special. They also tell me about fun memories with him. Then we include a small picture that they have done ( I wish now I had also included a picture of my husband with our kids each year). It's so neat to see how their relationship has grown and changed over the years. It also has taught us that the little things in life are the most meaningful. I have a wonderful husband, who is an awesome dad- so the pages are very full!

To start off the journal you could explain the idea and write a little bit about how he has been during your pregnancy.

I hope this helped!

C.:
What a lovely idea, and how thoughtfull of you! :)
I LOVE the book "Love You For Always" by Robert Munsch. I can't read it without crying. It is a children's book about fathers with significant meaning, one that he can read to his little one.
Here is the link (I found it for under $5!)
http://74.125.47.132/search?q=cache:vtMeBFohiwUJ:www.amaz...

Sorry about how long the link is! lol :)

My mother gave my husband a great children's book when I was almost due with our first child: "Because Your Daddy Loves You" by Andrew Clements. It's a GREAT book that quickly became our daughter's favorite (and ONLY Daddy reads it to her!). Or, check Amazon and google Daddy or Father children's books - there are many, and it's a great way to build a lasting, special bond between father & child.

I gave my husband the wooden Willow Tree (Demdaco) statue of a father holding a newborn...he loved it.

Best wishes!

we asked the nurses to put a footprint on the shirt my husband wore for the delivery, it's a keepsake that is one of a kind.

I'm not sure how well received this idea will be, but its my husband's all-time favorite gift: The Impregnator t-shirt, sold at Cafe press.
http://t-shirts.cafepress.com/item/impregnator-baseball-j...

http://www.drmoz.com/products.html has some really cute things.

When my son was born last April I got my Husband a humidor and filled it with cigars to share and celebrate with friends and family. He loved it and enjoyed sharing his excitement with those closest to him!

I bought my husband a nice silver photo frame that says "Daddy & Me" engraved on it. We still have it on display and update the pictures every so often.
Also, you might want to get him a baby backpack or a manly diaper bag!
As for book ideas for reading to your child: Goodnight Moon, The Runaway Bunny, The Kissing Hand, Pat The Bunny and any Dr. Suess books would be great!
There is also a book called "The Expectant Father" and a funny O. "Babyhood" by Paul Reiser that you might want to check out.

A friend of mine received this sculpture that didn't leave a dry eye in the room when he opened it. It was a man's hand holding the hand of a newborn baby. I don't know where you could find it but I think that would be a great forever gift. Congratulations!!

C.,
I did the same exact thing for my husband with our first son who is almost 4 now. The book I purchased was Without You by Sarah Weeks, it's the tale of the how the baby emperor penguin stays with daddy while mommy goes away and gets the food. It's heartwarming. Good luck and congratulations!

Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters by Meg Meeker, M.D. is a book every Dad should read. It really spells out how important/special the role of a Daddy to his daughter truly is. I gave it to my husband for Father's Day. He has really stepped up to the plate with our daughter. It is never too late for Dads to read this book.

As far as books for the Dad to read to new baby....any kind of flap book that he opens the flaps up and makes the sounds (barnyard, jungle, etc.) with his deeper voice. Our daughter now opens the flaps herself but loves to hear her Daddy's deep voice. They are so cute together.

Congratulations to both of you!

Congratulations, C.! And how thoughtful of you to keep the expectant Dad in mind.

We found some books that were Father focused. One is "Guess how much I love you" by McBrattney about a father bunny who tucks in his child bunny and they tell each other how much they love each other in bigger and bigger ways. Also the book, "I'll love you forever" about a son growing up oblivious to the love of his mother until she becomes sick and he returns home to tell his newborn of his love for her (watch out it is a tear inducer).

I hope this helps. Enjoy this life-changing experience. Your lives will never be the same and you have no idea how strong you are and the capacity of love that your heart is capable of giving.

A.

Be Prepared and The Expectant Father series are both great (see other posts for full title). I also began buying a "Dad-oriented" book for our daughter on each Father's Day. We've now had two and while Hop on Pop isn't really about dads, she and my husband LOVE "Daddy's Girl" by Garrison Keeler - great rhythm in the rhyming and cute photos! But my husband swears the Expectant Father series was the best - the only book he's read that is written for HIM, not the mom. We added the 4th book last Father's Day (I think it's for School Age kids) and he pulls them out about once a month to read a chapter or two.

I bought my husband a very cool - very un-girly "Daddy-pack" diaper bag. Diaper bags have come a long way in the last few years - they no longer have only Winnie the Pooh or little ducks on them, but an awful lot of them are still geared toward the mom. Congrats to both of you!

How about a message in a bottle:
http://www.timelessmessage.com/index.cfm

K. B
mom to 5 including triplets

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HarrisburgPAChat
Chat and events, within 2 hour radius

I bought my husband a journal from the Once Upon a Family Company. It's called Dates with Dad and it's a little journal with a little storage pocket and a page for writing about their time together, or little outings they had. You can see the collection here (and I'm not a consultant, just love the stuff!
My friend Joy is a consultant and a local Mamasource mom)

http://www.onceuponafamily.com/joydunn
click on products
click on staying in touch
then you'll see 2 dates with dad- one is a journal and one comes with a nice leather cover

I love this set!!! My husband actually journals in it too and loves reflecting on his one-on-one time with our daughter over the past 2.3 years.

I had ordered on line a crystal plaque with a special saying that I wrote for him. He keeps it in his office. I also heard someone bought a bottle of crown royal and a note saying that this was for daddy to open at the her or his wedding. Actually was at a wedding where the father opened a bottle that he had saved all those years. CONGRATULATIONS!

Maybe a wallet with one of the sonogram pictures in it right now that can be replaced with a picture of the baby when he/she is born. Or if he works in an office, a photo frame/cube that you can fill with pictures of the baby. Start with one of you pregnant and if it has multiple places for pics include one of the sonogram as well.

My husband bought for himself a hiking type fanny pack that he calls the DDB (Daddy's Diaper Bag). It has room for diapers and wipes and a few other essentials but is not huge and girlie. You could do something like that as well.

Anyhow, I know these are probably not the best ideas out there but that's what I came up with for now. If I think of anything great, I'll let you know. Best of luck with your new addition.

If you're looking for books, any book that you're husband alone reads to the baby will be special. With my kids, it was Good Night Gorilla and Good Night Moon. They loved when Daddy read them, but weren't so interested when I read them. Daddy does cool voices and shows them different things that Mommy doesn't do, while I got to read all the Clifford and Sandra Boynton books. Congratulations on your new arrival!

C.,

My husband is pretty big into football - so when I told him we were pregnant it was with a baby sized eagles jersey. He really enjoys having her dressed up in Eagles gear (or Steelers as all my family is from Pittsburgh) for the games.

I also bought a small shadowbox frame to hold small pictures of her for his desk at work. And a 1 page calendar with her picture at the top (from sears).

S.

C.;

what i did when i was expecting my first child - was to go to "color me mine" in camp hill - and i painted a mug that says "i love dad" and then gave it to him (now that was actually for fathers day) - then he kept it at his desk for awhile to keep pencils/pens in to remind him daily of her - then for awhile it was on our dresser and he kept "mementos" of her in it - Now she is 8 years old and the tables have turned she now keeps it in her room and keeps things that remind her of daddy in it - something like that would be really nice - plus then its from the both of you - and i know from experience that your emotions are in "rare" form when you are pregnant - and i felt Jackie (my daughter) channeling me to paint this -

Oh - and in case you need a birth doula - i am a trained (working on certification) birth doula in the Harrisburg area - and for WAY below average cost!!!

Let us know how it goes and what you decide!
S. W.
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