Sibling gift

deevaswani

Curious to hear from other STM+ what they are planning to do or have done in the past, if anything, by way of a sibling gift to give to their older child(ren).  @meeshybee I saw you mentioning one in the hospital bag post, which I thought was a brilliant idea.  My DS will be 5.5 yrs old when DD arrives. 

Interested in hearing if you are planning something, what it will be, and when you plan to present it to the older sibling.  So far the only thing I can think of is a tote full of activities (markers, crayons, books etc.) and a Big Bro t-shirt.  Would love to hear from other creative moms.  TIA )

jac409

My DD will be 22 months. We got her an American a Girl Bitty Baby doll with a little suitcase full of diapers and clothes. She came with a book too. We will give it to DD when she comes to the hospital to meet the baby.

mrsodonnell12

We got big brother (6.5 yo) a book set (the narnia series) to read together. We got big sister (21 months) a big sister book and baby with accessories (diapers, bottle, carrier).

ccam

DS will be 27 months. We got him a Skip Hop animal backpack (the frog one), a big brother teddy bear, disposable camera, coloring book/markers, Jake figures, a shutterfly book that I made about the day he was born and I'll probably throw a few snacks in too. We'll give it to him when he comes to meet the baby. I'm also wrapping up a big brother shirt and leaving it home so he has something to open before he comes to the hospital. I'm a RCS and he'll be home with my mom so a little easier to plan that.

alibissell

My son was 15 months old and obsessed with Cookie Monster when my daughter was born. So, we bought him a cookie monster stuffed animal that was from his baby sis, plus a Big Bro t-shirt. We bought a blanket (that he picked out) for him to give to his baby sibling. This time around, we have customized books for my son and daughter that will be their gift from the baby. I'm also going to leave Big Bro and Big Sis shirts for them to wear to the hospital. My husband is going to take them to (our equivalent of) Build-a-bear to make a stuffed animal for their new baby sibling before bringing them to meet him/her at the hospital ...at least that's the plan for now.

mb314

We didn't intentionally get a sibling gift, but DH ended up buying DS1 a cheap "monster truck" at Walgreens on the way to the hospital because he forgot toys to keep him busy in the hospital. DS 1 is 2, and was way more excited for the monster truck than meeting his little brother.

MsMolly520

DS will be 22 months and we got him two small gifts (one from each baby). He's very into electronic-type things right now so one is a toy phone (it has a couple different features) and the other is a set of keys with buttons that do different things. I put each in a separate bag with tissue paper -- he'll likely play with the bag as much as what's inside.

ElinJ

I came across a brand new looking Melissa & Doug car carrier toy at a consignment sale. My son is totally into trucks, cars, trains, etc.

The plan is, either my mom or my husband will bring him to meet the new baby. No mention of present. Just about meeting the new baby. After they have "met" & he's gotten some time with me, I want to say "Oh, and look, the baby got you a present!" and then give him the gift. That way he'll open it (loves presents… of course!) and hopefully be entertained for a little while longer playing with the truck and cars.

Then once it's time for him to leave, my mom or DH will say "Since the baby got you a present, we need to go pick out a present for the new baby!" Then they can make a trip to Target or whatever and pick out an outfit for the new baby (we are Team Green, with basically 1 gender neutral footies/sleepers, zero girl ones, and a handful of hand me down boy ones, even if this baby is a boy I want it to own at least 1 new outfit!) and also pick out a toy/gift for the new baby. I really want him to pick out the toy/present himself!! PLUS… It's a fun thing for him to get to do if he throws a fit and doesn't want to leave the hospital without me.

meeshybee

For DS and DD1 (ages 9 and 7) I just got them Big Brother/Sister bracelets. DD2 (who just turned 4) I got a bracelet as well as made her a Big Sister half-apron that I need to stock with random baby supplies (diapers, wipes, etc). I'm trying to make it a big deal that DD2 is my special helper so she won't feel left out. She's had me to herself most of the day since DD1 started school when she was a toddler, so it'll be an adjustment for her to not be the center of attention.

DD1 also customized some babylegs I made for LO. She wrote "New World" on them, so cute! I'm bringing those as part of the going home outfit and DD1 is very proud of that. Ina way that's kind of like a gift. I'm sure she'll let everyone know that she's the one who decorated them.

stacyslo

My ds is almost 4. We will give him the big brother bag when he comes to meet baby at the hospital. The main thing I got him was one of those kids digital cameras from Vtech that takes photos, records video and has a few games on it. This way he can record his own memories of her... I think he will like it a lot. Other than that, I put everything in a new spiderman backpack for him... It has the camera, big brother shirt, and some snacks. I may add a sticker book or something but I don't know how long he will actually be at the hospital...

kimberly_ann81

I find these ridiculous just like push presents.  It's like giving your child a present on your other child's birthday so they don't feel left out.

When Peanut was born the older boy went with Grandma and Grandpa to "A Day Out with Thomas the Train" but didn't get any present from Peanut.  He may get a new toy to take with to the sitters to play with but it won't be a "present" from the baby or us. Our 16 month old won't get anything.

abbyful

We're getting DS a "Big Brother" teddy bear a, a "Big Brother" ribbon to wear, and a new toy car.

I don't think it's ridiculous. My goal is to make new baby a very positive event, DS's world is about to get turned upside-down.

Heck, even when you get a new pet dog, they say give your existing dog 75% of the attention and new dog 25% of the attention at first.

With a new baby, obviously the baby will be getting the majority of the attention because of the stage of life they are in, but I think it's good to have the whole family have some celebration of the new baby. Similar to when people get married that already have kids from previous relationships, and they involved the kids in the wedding. This is a life-changing event, not a kid's birthday party.
Not to mention, when DS comes to visit new baby at the hospital, the baby will only hold his attention so long. A new toy will be a good distraction for him.

silverwings72

For the record, I cherished the gift I was given when my little sister was born. It was a glow worm loved it to death because it reminded me of her and my family's love. I wish we had kept it .

So, even though I am a FTM, I also don't find it ridiculous. I find it super sweet and an act of including the sibling in this big life event.

lovingaddi

@ccam‌ I like the disposable camera idea!!

We got DD a snackeez cup & ice cream shoppe playdoh (to give to her from baby). Just 2 things she's been asking for very frequently (& for a long time lol). I didn't really want to just do a "busy bag"...I don't foresee her spending long periods of time just sitting in the hospital though to make it necessary.

MuchlyGen

I'm intending to put together a little package for each of the boys, with something special and also some activities that may help keep them occupied while I'm busy... y'know... having a baby. Since we'll be at home I want to make sure they have things to do that will be new and engaging. 

But I also want to get them something special because it's a momentous occasion for them, it's a day that is going to change their lives significantly and I think it's nice to commemorate that. When I was born, my grandmother took my older sister and bought her her first dollhouse, and my sister still remembers how special and exciting that day was... plus it was something pretty thrilling to play with while our mom was busy/distracted/adjusting to having two. 

I haven't figured out /what/ I'm going to get for them yet, haha, and I'm rapidly running out of time... but I'd like to. 

tamarnina

I picked things that the older sibling could do with limited need for me to help. For my son, he got legos that he could build while I held/fed the baby (he was 5.5 when my daughter was born). This time, my son is 9, so I am not worried about him entertaining himself, but I still got him some new legos. For my daughter (3.5), I got a small Frozen playset (little figurines with a mat to play on and a book) from Costco. 

lizgrace03

I just wanted to add that I STILL remember the gifts I got when both of my younger siblings were born.  They were just small gifts (one was one of those shrinky dink things that you color and then bake--I'm really dating myself!!).  But, they meant a lot and so I don't think they are ridiculous at all.