An extra-special newborn Christmas: Money Bank!

Kids are so easy to shop for…once they can talk and tell you exactly what they want.  But gifts for brand-spankin’ new nieces and nephews?  Aside from things they need (diapers) and things they will quickly outgrow, it’s a harder shop.

My mom crochets baby blankets for the new family initiates.  However, I never learned anything beyond single & double chain…which is great for scarves or potholders, but otherwise somewhat limited.  They’re still too young for books (my typically “go-to” kids gift) and they probably could drown in all the stuffed animals & receiving blankets they’ve gotten.  So how about a gift that kids can’t outgrow?

MONEY.

I know, it sounds so superficial.  But I’m not talking about a ton of cash.  Rather, a collection of unusual & rare mint: like a $2 bill, gold dollar coin, buffalo nickel, wheat penny, state quarter from where they were born, a Kennedy half-dollar?  Heck, you can even give them their first Canadian coin, which they will no doubt later become familiar with when a vending machine rejects it three times in  a row.

What to put these simple treasures in?  How about an equally sweet & simple change bank?  Something for them to shake and rattle as they get older, just to listen to the musical clamor of coins.

My sis-in-law just had a new daughter, so that’s what we decided to go with for her.  I scoured the thrift shops, looking for something fun to fix up, and came across this ceramic bird bank that was just chirping with potential:

He didn’t have a stopper, but that’s easily fixed at the hardware store (about 75 cents), and for the $2 price tag, I just couldn’t resist.

 

What You Need:

Bank

Sandpaper

Paint

Clear coat

Money

 

Directions:

Sand down any rough areas, and the stopper opening if it’s not the exact size for the stopper you find at the store.  This one had someone else’s initials scratched into the base, so those had to go.

 

Give the bank a base coat of paint to cover its previous paint job (this one took two coats).  For paint, I went with an off-white, and then a pearl coat on top of that….these are just what I had on hand, so you can use whatever looks nice to you.

 

The nice thing about the neutral color as well is that it can go with any nursery theme, no matter what their color scheme is.

Once you’re happy with the coloring, take it outside and give the bank a good spray of clear coat.  This will add some extra shine and protect the paint job.  Then just feed the bird some money & wrap ‘er up!