Informal Baby Shower Planning and Etiquette
Anyone can throw a baby shower, although etiquette sticklers would vehemently disagree. Formal etiquette dictates that a non-relative throw the shower to avoid the appearance that the family is begging for gifts. My advice is to ignore formal rules and anyone close to the mom-to-be, even a —gasp!— relative can host the celebration. In another break with tradition, I also suggest hosting a shower for the expectant mom and dad. Despite many baby showers still follow the “for women only” tradition, co-ed parties are gaining in popularity.
Also, it seems showers are also fine for second and subsequent babies, and you don’t even have to call it a “baby party.” I advise inviting anyone who was, for whatever reason, not included in the first shower. But rules of etiquette aren’t completely thrown out the window. In keeping with tradition, if parents are registered for baby gifts, it is better, easier, (and more tasteful) to mention it to guests when they call to RSVP.
How to Throw an Alphabet Baby Shower?
An alphabet-themed baby shower is a fun and easy way to give the new baby a literary leg up.
Creative Baby Shower Invitations:
Have guests save the date of the baby shower by sending out invitations at least a month in advance. If you have a decent color printer, you can create them on your own. Otherwise, send out with the ABC’s on it. Include the date, time, where the shower is, who is throwing it, along with RSVP information and where the mom-to-be is registered. You can also suggest that guests bring a favorite childhood book to gift to the mom and help her little one learn his or her ABC’s.
Unique Baby Shower Decorations:
Baby shower lantern
Whether the shower is at home or out at a restaurant, turn the setting into a welcoming baby shower with a few decorations. String up ABC blocks lighted lanterns around the room. Buy two sets of peel and stick letters and create different words on the wall of the room like mom, baby, love, boy, girl, etc.
Monogram a picture frame with each guest’s initials and then print out each guest’s full name on a sheet to slide in the frame. The frames can double as place cards and as party favors. Scatter classic wooden alphabet blocks on the tables for decoration, and tie ABC letter balloons onto chairs around the room.
Yummy Baby Shower Food Ideas:
Create a fun menu that revolves around the letters ABC. Start off with an appetizer with the letter “A,” such as Alphabet Soup or Arugula Salad. For the main course, chose a dish that starts with a “B,” such as Braised Chicken. Finally, finish off your baby shower meal with the letter “C,” which of course stands for cake! Or cupcakes, if you prefer. Choose either an ABC block cake or ABC cupcakes.
Alphabet Themed Baby Shower Games:
Keep with the ABC baby shower theme by giving each guest a print out of the alphabet. Start a timer and see who can fill the list with words related pregnancy, new baby, and parenting. The first, second, and third guests to complete the alphabet win a prize. Have each winner stand up and read the entire list to the group. Offer the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners a bookstore gift card, or one one of three current bestseller books as a prize. See below for other games ideas.
Baby Shower Favors as Special as Your Guests
Baby shower favors are a nice way to thank your party guests and send them home with a little something extra by which to remember the event. After all, these are special friends and family members who have come bearing beautiful gifts to shower the mom-to-be and her new baby. While they may not expect a thoughtful gift in return, they certainly deserve one.
Unfortunately, baby shower favors are often an afterthought when planning the party. Homemade sweets, potted plants, and decorative soaps are lovely, but a little unoriginal. Why not impress your guests with baby shower favors that are as unique and special as they are?
Here are five great baby shower favors that will express your sincere appreciation without breaking the bank.
In addition to the love and affection they feel for the mom-to-be, most of your shower guests will also have something else in common: Purses. A purse hook is a useful invention that allows a woman to hang her handbag from a table rather than place it on the floor. As baby shower favors, you can be sure these won’t end up stuffed in a drawer and forgotten.
50 Pieces Vintage Love Bottle Stoppers: $$
They will think of you every time they pop a cork when you give these Love Bottle Stoppers as baby shower favors. Available in pink or blue packaging, the classic stoppers are a Kate Aspen original design and feature the familiar “LOVE” letters.
Eco-Friendly Personalized Seed Packets: $$
Go green and grow some too with these packets of assorted wildflower seeds. The personalized pouches are packed in the biodegradable paper and contain enough seeds to grow a 200 square foot garden. With a paper flower on top, it’s a baby shower favor any earth mother would appreciate.
Baby Shower Teapot Timer Set Of 24: $$$
While you can’t give your guests more time, you can help them keep track of it with this adorable Teapot Timer. A 60-minute timer shaped like a classic teapot, this is a baby shower favor that is sure to find a prominent home in everyone’s kitchen.
Cup Cozy 2 Pack: $$Hand crocheted in organic cotton; these sweet cup cozies make for one-of-a-kind baby shower favors. Designed to protect hands from hot coffee cups, they would be even more appreciated if presented along with a gift card for a local coffee shop.
Baby Shower Games
Baby shower games have gotten a reputation for being ridiculous wastes of time that even the most accommodating guest dreads. While everyone wants to celebrate the mom-to-be and shower her with gifts, absolutely nobody wants to taste baby food or inspect a melted chocolate bar in a diaper. So don’t make them!
If you are planning a shower for someone special, think beyond the tried and true terrible and opt for some baby shower games that won’t make your guests wish they could disappear. Baby shower games can be fun, entertaining and not the least bit embarrassing. And here’s proof: We’ve found five great baby shower games that are not exercises in buffoonery.
Baby Picture Guessing Game:
Find out just how beautiful your friends were as babies with this fun baby shower game. Ask each guest to bring a photo of themselves as an infant and see who can match the most photos with the correct guest.
The Price is Right:
This baby shower game works just like the television show of the same name. Guests try to guess how much each item in an assortment of baby-related products costs. Whoever comes the closest to the correct amount wins a prize.
Don’t Say Baby:
This is a baby shower game that players participate in throughout the party. Upon arrival, each guest is given a clothespin to attach to his or her clothing and instructed to refrain from saying the word “baby.” If they get caught by another guest uttering that four-letter word, they must hand over their clothespin. Whoever has the most clothespins wins at the end of the shower!
TV Family Tree:
See how well your friends know their sitcoms with this fun baby shower game. Give each guest a list of fictional television families and see who can name all the children from the shows.
Name that Tune:
Another television-inspired baby shower game, this one has guests trying to identify songs after hearing only snippets of the tunes. Make a mix CD of songs that have all have the word “baby” in them and see who can correctly guess the most song titles.
Let me know if you liked these baby shower ideas.
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