Can we get there from here?

I have a problem.  I've been commissioned to do a baby project for a brand new person that's scheduled to join humanity sometimes this summer... in southern California.  Knitting doesn't quite lend itself to crafting summer things as well as it does to warm winter snugglies.  Added to that is my personal inexperience with infants.  Booties are adorable, but really impractical, causing most mommies to forgo those little accessories.  Oh, and the parents are choosing to wait until the birth to find out the gender.

So, let me ask the question to any readers willing to comment; any suggestions for cool (denotative cool... not cool as in "cool beans") knit/crochet baby items? 

These are a few of my favorite things

The Midwest thunderstorms are nothing to sneeze at, and I can finally understand why the Von Trapp kids were bolting to Maria’s beside.  While whiskers on kittens definitely calm me, I also have a few items that didn’t quite make it into that musical number:

My ball winder – how do I love thee?  Let me count the ways… you make me cakes; and yarn cakes are far less fattening than the red velvet kind.  Since they’re center pull I don’t have to worry about balls of yarn bouncing all over the apartment.  You’ve saved me countless hours by keeping my skeins untangled and organized.  The delicate wing nut which allows you to clamp to tables of so many widths; and your rubber foot caresses and keeps surfaces pristine.

Interchangeable circular needles – Your bright colors make my heart smile.  Flexible, adaptable; oh, if only people could be more like you!  Tucked away neatly in your case, I know you’re there waiting for me, ready to morph needle size so that my hat brims remain snug and the crown comfortable.  With your end caps and extenders, you make it so easy to knit a blanket in one fell swoop, instead of panel after panel with endless joining.

My mountains of bamboo dpns - I love the way you cling to my yarn, easing my anxiety of dropping stitches.  Be it socks, gloves or finishing a hat, you tempt me to make tubes, for feet, fingers, hands and heads.  Bringing stitches back and forth, thank you for being an ever ready cable needle of just the right size.  

Row Counters – You who watch over my project, who keep me focused and sane.  I admire how you gently guide me back into place after I’ve dealt with the mundane interruptions of life.   You congratulate me on every accomplished row by singing “click”, and tempt me to finish the perpetual "one more".

Magnetic Chart Keeper – so long did I lust after you.  Finally, this December you came into my life.  The attraction I feel to you is not just because of your magnetism; though I do appreciate not having to mar my patterns with holes or marks.   Propped open you handsomely display my complicated rows in elegant simplicity.  Closed, you keep my pattern safe in my knitting bag, with my place marked and ready whenever I am ready for more.