When you first get pregnant you think of all the things that you will want to do during your pregnancy. Have a baby shower (or maybe more than one!), set up a baby registry and decorate your baby’s nursery. Have you thought about how you can keep track of the physical aspects of your pregnancy?

Taking pictures of your growing belly is a great way to keep track of your pregnancy. It will also be a great beginning to your baby’s scrapbook or photo album. Before you start however there are several things to think of.

1. Pick the perfect outfit.
If you want to showcase your growing belly and how it makes a certain shirt or skirt change shape on your body, wear that outfit for the first picture you take and for all the pictures following. Be sure to get an outfit that will still fit your belly when you are nine months along.

2. Bikini’s.
Some women will chose to wear their bikini or a bra and panties in order to take pictures of their belly. Side by side the naked belly pictures will show every inch, as well as every stretch mark you might get.

3. Decide how much you want to remember.
Because belly pics will show every aspect of your belly, decide how much you want to remember ahead of time. Do you want to see all the stretch marks in 10 years, or would you rather your belly be covered by clothes? Early on the blemishes won’t be there, but by the end the blemishes may be more than noticeable.

4. How much of your body do you want to show?
Remember that as your pregnancy progresses and you gain weight, most of the time you don’t only gain it in your belly. Many times you will gain it in your face, your behind, your legs and your thighs. Some people will want to see the full change, others will want to forget. Whatever you decide, go with it for your first picture and follow through with it for the rest.

5. Use props.
Maybe you go out immediately and buy the baby’s first stuffed animal or you want to detail your progress with a tape measure. Knowing that some of your baby’s first pictures will be with that stuffed animal, you can take pictures of yourself holding the animal, or as your belly gets bigger you can have the animal “holding” the belly. You can also get a picture of the tape measure around your belly so that you can record the inches you grow not only on paper but on film.

Use your imagination when it comes to photographing your pregnancy and your belly growth! The sky is the limit and nothing is out of line. After all, you will only be pregnant THIS time once, and all pregnancies are different so you will never be able to get these exact shots again. And with all the FREE print offers these days that include free shipping and free online storage, be sure to take as many shots as you can.

by Stephanie Gallagher, Editor The Shopping Mom’s Guide to Baby Gifts

Why do some baby gifts stand out from the crowd and others seem to get lost in the recipient’s memory, never to be found again?

Surprisingly, it has little to do with cost of the baby gifts. Rather, it’s the little, thoughtful touches that make all the difference.

Some tips:

Add an Element of Humor
You don’t have to spend a lot of money to give baby gifts that are memorable. Try putting together your own “Nursing Survival Kit,” with breast pads, Lansinoh cream, frozen peas (to ease nursing soreness), and a copy of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding.

Put Together a Creative Baby Gift Basket
Create a “Sleep Like a Baby” baby gift basket with a soft baby blanket or lovey, a white noise CD (vacuum sounds are great!) and a Miracle Blanket (for easy swaddling).

Or transform a simple baby book into a “Remembering the Moment” baby gift basket, by adding a copy of the local newspaper from the day the baby was born, copies of Time and People magazines from the week the baby was born, a current postage stamp, and a sales flyer from the local grocery store.

Twenty years from now, the parents and grown child will have fun looking back at everything from the price of a dozen eggs to who the hot celebrities were back when junior was a baby.

For more gift basket ideas, check out The Baby Gift Basket: Finding the One That’s Guaranteed to Please

Include Everything the New Parents Will Need to Make It Work
Nobody likes extra work. So do whatever you can do to make it easy for the new parents to enjoy your baby gift.

For example, if your present requires batteries, include a small package of batteries (the correct type, of course,) with it. You don’t even need to give the whole pack — just the right amount for the item you’ve given. You’d be amazed how grateful the new parents will be.

Put it Together For Them
The best baby gifts for new parents are those that require no work on their part to enjoy.

However, this is a strategy that’s best used when you are absolutely positive the new parents want what you’ve gotten them. Remember, baby gifts that are put together aren’t so easily returned. So do this when you’re buying something off the registry or when the recipients have specifically asked for what you’re giving them.

Include a Gift Receipt
They may love what you’ve gotten, but they may have also gotten two or three baby gifts just like it. Make it easy to return yours, and they’ll be grateful.

Include Your Full Name and Address on the Card
After 36 hours of labor and two weeks of sleep deprivation, a new mommy can’t be counted on to remember her own last name, let alone yours. That’s true even if she’s your sister or best friend. So make it easy for her by writing your full name on the card. Including your address, too, makes it easy for to write the thank-you note.

About the Author:
Stephanie Gallagher, a.k.a., The Shopping Mom, is the author of several parenting books and Editor of The Shopping Mom’s Guide to Baby Gifts