Perfect Baby Shower Basics
You’ve been asked to
throw a baby shower for your favorite-mom-to-be. Excited? Yes. Honored? Yes.
Nervous about how to pull off ‘the perfect shower’ that mom-to-be and all the
guests will enjoy? YES!!! Worry not, with some helpful tips and a little planning,
you’ll put on a fabulous baby shower that all will not soon forget.
Planning
The optimal time frame for a baby shower is within a few weeks of the mom’s due date. You want to make sure it’s early enough to minimize her chances of going into labor. Consider throwing her shower around her 35th week of pregnancy. Next you need to consider mom-to-be’s schedule and choose a date that works for her. You’ll also need to obtain a guest list from her. Typically, baby shower guest lists include family members, friends and coworkers.
Now that you know the ‘when’ and ‘who’ you can choose a venue. For a small, intimate gathering mom-to-be’s favorite restaurant would be a good choice. Call in advance to book a private room and ask about coming in early to decorate. Other venue options include your own home, mom-to-be’s home or you can book a private event hall such as a hotel suite, country club or community center. ‘As long as there is plenty of room for guests, the location shouldn’t be a major stress point of the planning process. Lastly, be sure to ask mom-to-be where she is registered so that you can include that information with the invitations you mail to guests.
Food and Decorations
Time of day does matter when deciding on the menu, but more so is mom-to-be’s cravings and aversions to food. Take her taste into consideration and consider finger sandwiches, fruit and vegetable platters, cheese platters, her favorite sandwiches and her favorite desserts. Rather than a typical store bought cake, you can be creative and ask your local bakery to create a cake that looks like a baby carriage or a multi-tier cake with a baby on top and the baby’s name on the side.
Decorations can be themed or not; keeping mom and baby the center of attention and possibly following the theme of the nursery or the sex of the baby are good ideas. Diaper cakes and flowers make lovely centerpieces at guest tables. Additionally, you can decorate with balloons and other baby items.
Gifts
Pregnant women typically register for baby items to receive from friends and family, which means you can choose her shower gifts from her registry. Anything listed on her gift registry is something she wants, so you don’t have to worry about her not liking your gift. Some mom’s choose alternative registries, like a cord blood registry to help fund her desire to utilize umbilical cord blood banking; some other mothers have a diapers-only party.
At the end of the day, a
baby shower should be a fun event to get everyone excited to welcome a new baby
into the world, and to help a new mother prepare her home for the items that
baby will need when he is born. Using the simple steps above as a guide, the
baby shower will be a memorable day that your friend, and soon to be mom, will
cherish forever.
Thanks to Katie Moore for providing this informative post!
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