In many ways, Layah is a significantly less expensive baby than Darah was. We haven’t had to purchase many items for her, largely due to the fact that she inherited all her big sister’s old stuff. From clothes to baby gear all the way down to stuffed animals, Layah is blessed with all that she needs from her big sis.
Or to look at it in a much more cynical way, she’s stuck with all the leftovers.
I think the truth lies somewhere in the middle. But as family members have asked me for suggestions for Layah this Christmas, I have been a little bit stumped. And if I’m going to be completely honest with you, I have to tell you that I haven’t purchased much at all for her, either.
But then I had an idea: perhaps a really fun gift to give to younger siblings up to their eyeballs in hand-me-downs is something that is their very own. Something with their name on it. What a treat that would be! Goodness knows I received several things with Darah’s name on them (things that little Layah is happily using now). But when it is time to put together the “baby memento” boxes for each girl, do I really want to give Layah a blanket with Darah’s name on it and say to her, “Well, you used it, too.”? I don’t think so.
Personal Creations is a terrific destination for a plethora of personalized baby gifts. I had my eye on an activity mat for Layah because she spends a lot of time on the living room floor, crawling around and playing. I had been putting down regular baby blankets for her, but they were way too thin and always ended up bunched up in a pile.
This Baby Alphabet Quilt from Personal Creations is much sturdier, and oh my word is it cute!
I wanted to show you some of the detail up close. This mouse is just one of many examples of great detailing in this quilt. It is these kinds of features that will make this play mat a keepsake for Layah.
If you have a child on your Christmas list who is a younger sibling and mostly has hand-me-downs, consider getting them something extra special and personalized just for them. There will be no disputing whose memory box it will go into, and based on the quality of the product I reviewed, there’s also no doubt that items from Personal Creations will make the cut as mementos to hang on to long after the baby days are over!
I received a complimentary product for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Great idea! I am having the same problem with my second child. She has all of big sis’s stuff and doesn’t need anything, so I have just been telling everyone to get her diapers, but apparently giving diapers for Christmas is not “fun,” or so I’ve been told. And Layah’s middle name is what my mom wanted me to name my daughter. I didn’t, of course, but it’s still a very pretty name 🙂