From the Inside Out

Those of you who know me well know that I loathe baby showers. I can only take so many “ooh’s” and “ahh’s” before I want to start ripping out my hair. And since I don’t have children, I find shopping for baby stuff terribly annoying. The stores are crowded with crying infants. I have no idea what to buy, and the long laundry list of items provided on the registry doesn’t help either. I don’t have a clue what most of the items are and why they are important. It’s a best guess effort every time…until now.

I found a “heelarious” gift for baby girls, leopard print heels. Yes, that’s right…heels. Heelarious.com offers soft crib booties for babies designed to look like high heels. They are extremely cute and funny at the same time.

The shoes — in sizes 0 to six months — are designed purely for entertainment purposes. They are completely safe because the soft stilettos collapse when weight is put on them. The novelty pumps come in six colors - leopard satin print, hot pink patent, black satin, zebra satin, black patent, and hot pink satin.

Now if heels aren’t your thing, you can choose to buy the new baby girl her first pair of boots instead. Heelarious also has baby boots complete with spurs. They come in black or two-toned red and pink.

Check ‘em out. And if you buy these for a shower, check with me first to make sure we don’t show up with the same gift…haha!

I’m odd. I know it. I think my “baby gene” failed to develop properly because I’m not one of those girls who are naturally drawn to babies. Even so, I have to admit that there is something incredibly special about the day a baby enters into the world.

I have celebrated the births of three nephews and one niece, as well as the births of my closest friends’ children. After nine months of waiting, I enjoy seeing the new baby, but to be completely honest, my favorite thing is watching the new parents as they look at the incredible gift that God has given to them. The mixture of joy and awe on their faces is a special sight to behold. I enjoy sitting back and simply observing their expressions. It’s neat.

We have welcomed a large number of babies into the world during the last two years — there was a major baby boom at our church in 2007 and 2008. Another special one was born today. Heidi and Cody welcomed Hayden into their family.

She weighs in at 7 pounds and 8 ounces. She is perfect and gorgeous. Heidi and Cody were all smiles.

Once again, I witnessed how special new life can be.

There are only a few things I hate worse than baby showers. Every time I get an invitation, I cringe. The thought of spending two to three hours eating bad food, fake “cooing” over an endless barrage of baby gifts and listening to women sharing their birth experiences drains the life out of me.

The baby boom at our church last year forced me to attend more showers than anyone should attend in one lifetime. Luckily, there are fewer showers this year, but it’s still a duty I dread. Often I wonder why men are exempt from this activity. It’s not fair that women have to suffer through these things while the guys get to stay home. They are SO lucky, and I’m SO jealous.

Anyway, after attending 2 baby showers this week, I’m “showered” out. I found an interesting “childfree” blog today, and it had some great advice regarding showers. The author decided to be honest with people and let them know that showers weren’t really her thing. Instead, she and her husband take the couple out for dinner at a nice restaurant.

I think it’s a great idea (and one I may try when I get invited to another shower). This way, both couples have a really great time. They can sincerely enjoy the occasion (unlike a baby shower where you are completely uncomfortable and/or bored) and feel like they are doing something that is meaningful to all.

It may be kind of like the last supper (ha!), but I still think it’s a great idea and much better than attending the endless barrage of showers.