Need Suggestions for a Special Gift

it doesn't matter what you give her she is one she won't remember it. If it was me I would get a soft rag doll and a savings bond or open a bank account and start putting money in for each birthday / holiday etc. she won't appreciate it now but when she is older she will love it.

I'm guessing you could give her something absolutely amazing and she may not even realize it, or even know it came from you. Hard to tell with one year olds, they sometimes like the paper gift bags better than the gift itself. With so many people coming, a lot of one years olds are taking naps by the gift opening time (I'm a party entertainer, so I see this a lot).

Perhaps getting her a very soft little lovey/blanket, something she can love now and cherish when she is older. Especially if it is a very nicely handcrafted one like on of these:

http://www.etsy.com/search/handmade?search_submit=&q=...

http://www.etsy.com/search/handmade?search_submit=&q=...

Or even a special gift like a pretty music box, or heirloom locket or something. Can never go wrong with a big, fluffy tutu!

I would say get something with her name on it. Something personalized. A piggy bank? picture? embroidered blanket?

I tend to think that no one-year-old will think any gift is "special". If there are 25 gifts, yours will definitely get lost in the pile. Don't let it discourage you though. She's only one!

But if you want to give a gift that will be special for years to come, I like Noelle's suggestion of a charm for a bracelet. You can give her a new one every year. One really nice gift that my daughter got from my sister's FIL was a silver baby spoon from Tiffany's. She doesn't eat with it, but I just think it is beautiful and will make for a nice heirloom someday. Good luck!

I would suggest a personalized "lovey". I would encourage you to look on ebay, carters or google and find one you like. They are called many different things from Lovey, lovie, blanket buddy, etc. What ever you call it, both of my kids gravitated to them. My daughter had a Winnie the Pooh "lovey" and my son had a particular bear one from carters' that he absolutely loved. They stayed attached to them for a long time and still have them. That would be a Special gift just for her and could become a keepsake with her name on it.
Good Luck

You could do a stool with wooden letters of her name maybe. I'm sure there are places that do personalized goods like that somewhere near you, I'd just google it. I know my cousins did a little a stool at one of those paint-your-own pottery place and they inlaid tiles into a wooden stool where they had painted a picture and name on it and it was really cute! We use stools all over our house so it's a useful, personal and unique gift!

Maybe not as personal, but still fun, would be a ride-on toy or a push toy. My daughter got a baby stroller that is actually a walker and she loved it! We used it a ton and passed it on to many others who love it too!

You could also do a gift certificate or membership to a local museum or dance class or something. At 1 the baby won't know who gave what present and if she's going to be getting a lot of "things" something like that might be really appreciated by the parents.

My father in law gave my daughter a wooden personalized coat rack for her first birthday.
She still has it, and she's 10.

We invest in numismatics and have a lot of very old and valuable coins.

One thing I keep on hand is a roll of Morgan Silver Dollars. I put them in the special casing from the coin exchange and give it to say, a big brother or sister, etc. They cost about $12.50 each when we got them and some are worth about $25 now.

I also like to give proof sets of the birth year. Some years are pricier than others but it is a nice gift as well.

My daughter received a couple of hand made blankets which were very nice and special to us. One family we are close to gave her one of the Dreamsicle figurines when I announced that I was pregnant and gave her one for each birth year up to age 7. Very nice. Ever since then, they have given her a special Christmas ornament for her collection.

Have fun!

My favorite 1st b-day gift is a growth chart. My girls got them when they turned one, and we measure them every 6 months. They have really cute ones online at landofnod.com

How 'bout a nice picture frame?

http://www.michaelcfina.com/gifts/frames/lobjet-platinum-...

The thing you give is not as important as the fact you are there! Offer to help -- to set up beforehand, clean up afterward. Or the day (or evening) after the party, offer to watch baby so the parents can take a breather. Or even better, set a date on the calendar to visit again in the next six months. I have a dear older brother and a dear 3 y o son, and the very best thing my brother can do is be a presence in my son's life. Enjoy the special weekend with your niece and family!

Dr. Seuss board books! You could even write a little note in the cover saying happy 1st birthday.....Baby Einstein even makes these really cute books too.....

There are lots of personalized gifts at places like Lillian Vernon, and they are so cute!

My mom and aunt made afghans for my kids and those are great keepsakes.

The most memorable gifts my son got for his 1st birthday:
A cute piggy bank with two coins from his birth year. He still uses it.
A nice toy box.
A rocking horse.
A kid-sized rocking chair.
It has been 30 years and we still have them all, and remember each giver when we speak of the gifts.

I would have to say some type of chair too..my daughter got one for our porch to sit with us and she loved it. any chair that suites the family lifestyle. she also loves her own camping chair.

well, one gift which will bring lots of laughter:

a time-out chair! We gave our son a rocker from Cracker Barrel....20+ years ago & it's still going strong for the little ones in our family.

All of the kids in our family received coin proof sets from my Dad on their 1st birthday. I also like that idea.

My Mom got sticky backed felt from the craft store and made different colored letters of their name for their walls....and I LOVE them!!! They are color coordinated to match their room decor and their letters of their names go on their wall(s) in their rooms and then she made some for the outside of their bedroom doors. My sons' door says 'The Boys' and my daughter's door says 'Lil' Sis'...with a couple little hearts for added decoration. :)

My sister got my first born a matching wooden painted step-stool and growth chart for his room that is personalized with his name...I think she got it from the store 'Things Remembered'? Very Cool!

For all 3 of my kids' very first Christmas I made them each a bear from Build-A-Bear...and they all love them, almost as much as I do :)

I haven't read your responses but I got this personalized fairy take book for my own daughter for her 1st bday: http://www.iseeme.com/my-very-own-fairy-tale-personalized...

She was a bit young to play with it on her own (bc it has paper pages - not a board book)...but we put it on the shelf and I took it out to read to her on occasion. Now she is 2 and can play with it herself without ruining it. It is really a special keepsake!

A sterling silver charm bracelet with a special charm for her first bday, with her initials and birthdate. You can Google and find really cute ones for any occasion. Each year you can send charms for different holidays and events. She can wear it when she's little (3-5 years old) and get a bigger bracelet to put all her charms on when she grows out of the kid-sized one. It makes a great, very special piece of jewelry she can wear from youngster to adulthood.

The gift we gave to my son when he was small and that which he still uses today is an aisel...One side is for markers and the other side for chalk.. It's not only been good for his creative side but we have also used for learning the alphabet and even to this day we will do math problems on it.. He loves it and as mentioned, more than any other toy, it's gotten the most use..