Babies – and their parents – get a lot of practical gifts when they enter the world. Clothes, blankets, bottles, rattles, diaper pails, etc. Stand out from the crowd with these unique, National Parenting Publications Award-winning (NAPPA) gift ideas that will appeal to baby’s eyes and ears.
Books
Babies can’t read yet, but they love to be read to. These NAPPA gold-award winners feature baby-friendly board books, a counting book and even a story with a sing-along CD:

• Dancing Feet, by Lindsey Craig, illustrated by Marc Brown; Random House Children’s Books, 2010; $16.99; randomhouse.com/kids. The lively rhyming language and jubilant art in this hardcover book will have kids joyfully dancing on happy feet.

• Old MacDonald Had a Farm, adapted by Kim Mitzo Thompson and Karen Mitzo Hilderbrand, illustrated by Patrick Girouard; Twin Sisters Productions, 2010; $10.99; twinsisters.com. This traditional song is presented as a brightly-colored, padded board book that includes a CD of 14 additional fun songs.

• One Pup’s Up, by Marsha Wilson Chall, illustrated by Henry Cole; Simon & Schuster Children’s, 2010; $16.99; kids.simonandschuster.com. A counting book as sweet and peppy as 10 little puppies.

• Up, Up, Up!, by Susan Reed and Rachel Oldfield; Barefoot Books, 2010; $16.99; barefootbooks.com. Sail away in a hot air balloon with three children and their dog in this beautifully illustrated book, which includes a sing-along CD.

Lullabies
Soft, soothing and sweet – nothing beats a lullaby for calming a baby:

• Music Together® Lullabies, various artists, Music Together LLC, 2009; $14.95; musictogether.com; ages 0 to 6. Music Together® CDs are perfect companions to this company’s live classes, but the music can stand alone. This album contains traditional folk songs arranged simply and with minimal instrumentation.

• Party Like a Twinkle Star, Charity and the JAMband, 2010; $17.98 double CD; jamjamjam.com; ages 0 to 9. From songs that sound like mom at your bedside (“So Long to the Day”) to a folk version of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,” your child will fall asleep with a smile.

• Sing Me Goodnight, Lisa Redfern, Hurricane Music, 2010; $15; lisaredfern.com; ages 0 and up. Gentle and soothing vocals ride effortlessly on original and traditional folk tunes, with simple yet elegant arrangements. Two songs are dedicated to parents growing their families through adoption. 

• Sing Me to Sleep – Indie Lullabies, Various Artists, American Laundromat Records, 2010; $13.95; alr-music.com; ages 0 and up. Different, different, different! Indie artists embrace and retrace classic lullabies with a fresh heartfelt zest.