What's in Store

Is spring baby season? I have actually heard that more U.S. babies are born in October than in any other month, so probably not. But, I have been invited to a lot of baby showers lately.

Now that more parents are registering for baby gifts, much in the traditional wedding registry sense, it’s making it a whole lot easier for childless baby shower guests like myself to find an appropriate present. But I still could use some extra help…

Who knew I would find some answers while at work?! This morning I took a peek at an internal list of the most recent top 50 clicked products on Shopping.com when lo and behold, a Hotslings baby carrier was the number one clicked product on our site. You might be thinking “so what?” Well, I found it interesting because, usually the #1 item across our site is a tech gadget, like an iPod or GPS device, a laptop or a digital camera. In fact, most of our top 50 list falls into one of these camps, so it wasn’t what I was used to seeing on top. This just solidifies what the Internet retail world is seeing across the board - the mainstreaming of online shoppers.

Of course, more and more folks are heading online to shop than ever before, but what they’re buying is also changing. Where several years ago your average 35-year-old woman would only shop for a dress or even home furniture online as a last resort, it’s now one of the first places she will turn when looking for clothing, jewelry and home and garden items.

Anyway, back to the Hotslings baby carrier…it would definitely make a no-brainer shower gift since it’s apparent that millions of people are looking for one. And, at prices ranging from $20-$40, it’s very affordable too.

I kept reading down our popular products list and was surprised to see another baby item, a diaper bag, on the list at #12…the Storksak “Donna” shoulder diaper bag. This bag is so swanky, I almost want to get one myself (for work, not babies!).

After doing a little research, I discovered the reason for the mad rush. This bag was recently featured in People Magazine as Angelina Jolie’s baby bag of choice for her three, now four, bambinos.

For $175 a pop, it’s probably more along the lines of what a grandparent or full-fledged adult (I’m in my late twenties, but still wistfully consider myself a “girl”) would give, but maybe two or three friends could pool their money for it. A third baby-related item, another cute diaper bag, came in at #24. Must be a record day for baby stuff on Shopping.com. However, rather than leave you with another bag as a gift idea, I decided to find a humorous gift.

How about a baby Halloween costume? I’ve yet to see someone give this at a shower, but I think it would be hilarious. Even more so if the parents decided to use it year-round for a jaunt to the park, grocery store trip or church on a Sunday. It would definitely be a good conversation starter for single parents! Especially if it’s a Star Wars Princess Leia get-up.

Newborns should definitely dress up for their first Halloween. Face it, it’s the only year of their lives that they’ll probably let you impose your costume idea on them. After they start talking they’ll come up with all kinds of reasons why they don’t want to be Raggedy Ann or Andy, or the proverbial pumpkin that all moms seem to swoon over. Trust me, I’ve been there.

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