The ladies in our family hosted a baby shower for my niece and we decided that the shower should be held at my niece's home. The ladies appointed a host which would plan the shower; we were asked to bring a finger food or salad or a light dessert item, such as chocolate covered strawberries.
The menu included chicken salad with croissants, artichoke dip with assorted crackers, fruit tray with fruit dip, vegetable tray with dip, rotel dip with chips, mini poppy seed muffins with lemon curd and beverages included punch, coffee, soft drinks and tea.
The hostess of the baby shower prepared the table with a beautiful table cloth and fresh flowers. The food was arranged on the table so the guests could go around the table to serve themselves. The beverages were served in the kitchen.
During the baby shower "meal", the family members visited with each other and then toured the baby's nursery. Each person was asked to address a thank-you note envelope to assist the mother-to-be in mailing out the these notes to the people who gave the baby gifts.
When she opened the gifts, a picture was taken at the time each gift was opened. The gift was presented to the guests to look at and the last person to receive the gift took it to the baby's nursery. At the end of the shower, the guests helped with clean-up as the expectant mother admired the baby gifts in her baby's nursery.
This is a grand idea because the expectant mother doesn't have to have the gifts loaded into her vehicle and drive home and then unload the gifts to the nursery. The hostess also offered to help prepare the expectant mother's home for the baby shower. This tip may not be a good idea for every expectant mother but it certainly was an ideal situation in our case.
by Jose from Collierville, TN
How many people should be invited to a baby shower? Is it okay if it is a large party or should it be small and intimate? Also, who should be invited? Is there any etiquette surrounding this?
By Stella from Manchester, WA
Well, there aren't any rules about how many to invite. Depends on the size of the "home" or other place where you are having it, how many friends and family they have, how much you plan to spend, etc. A good amount is at least a dozen, besides mother-to-be and host(esses).
Etiquette-wise, technically the shower giver is supposed to be a friend, not a relative, but these days people don't stick by that and probably nobody much cares. You would definitely invite the mother-to-be's mother, sisters, sister-in-laws, close friends and anybody else she deems important (other relatives, close co-workers, church friends, neighbors) and also same for the expectant father. (This being the old fashioned "women only" shower, but if you are more diverse, you can invite the Fathers and other men.)
I am giving a baby shower for my son and his girl friend, but I have very little money to do this and don't even know how to put a shower on. Please help!
By carol from Auburn, ME
A frugal baby shower is very very possible. After having read previous posts from the last several years right here on this site I can assure you that the ideas offered are great ones. I will give some advice just to reiterate what others have previously posted. Food is not a necessity. Have the shower mid afternoon. After lunch time before dinner. Your guests will know to eat prior to arrival and will not want/need to eat while there. A cake, drinks, and nuts/pretzels is all that is needed. I had my shower at 2 PM and the biggest part of my food (at least 75%) was not touched because most people did not expect food and had already eaten.
Also the cake is just as good home made. It shows you put more love into it than just going out and buying one. Throw away cake pans with lids can be purchased for $1 at just about any Dollar Store and cake mixes and icing are fairly cheap. You should be able to make a nice cake for less than $10 and it should easily feed 20-30 people. Once again I had plenty of cake left over too. I think out of 20 people 2 had ice cream so save $ there too. Most people will be just fine with whatever you have to offer. It is a day for Mom and baby, not a dinner party for guests. Just to give you a sigh of relief, my baby shower was done for less than $40 and I had food (BBQ on buns, pasta salad, chips) and ice cream that was not needed. I had matching decorations, plates, utensils, games, gifts for prize winners, and even balloons. I purchased everything except for food products at the Dollar Tree. I'm not sure if there is one in your area but it is available online(www.dollartree.com) and every item is $1. Good Luck with the shower. You will do great! And congrats on you to the new grandbaby!
In our area baby showers consist of ladies coming to someone's house with gifts, to visit with the new mom and the baby. We give them after the baby is born. The hostess serves tea, coffee, maybe juice or punch, a decorated cake or maybe some dainties. The entertainment is mostly holding the new baby. Sometimes they have a memory game where the hostess makes up a tray with about 20 baby things on it (baby wipes, a soother, Orajel, a diaper, thermometer, brush and comb, diaper pin, and so on) and everyone gets to look at this for about 10 seconds each. Then they have to write down what was on the tray. Those that get closest to all the items, get a small prize -- decorated candle or something from the dollar store. Taking lots of pictures is also part of the deal. It is always quite low key; expense is not an issue as one uses their own dishes and decorations are optional. Sometimes someone decorates a box in some theme (like a John Deere grain wagon if it is a boy baby in a farm family) or gives a larger gift like a stroller that you can put the gifts in, and then make a big deal of bringing them in.
Prizes for game winners, stock up on baby items and when all is done, the prize winners give the mom the prizes.
Here's what I did. My mother helped me plan my shower and although many ladies have their own ideas against throwing your own shower, I had quite a few coworkers and friends that I did not want to exclude from celebrating with me.
I anticipated 20-30 ladies and started planning the event months in advance. Since I was only a few months pregnant over the holidays, I took advantage of after-holiday sales and bought gift sets from various stores like Bath & Body Works, KMart, and Target while they were 70-90% on clearance! I stayed away from anything that was holiday-themed, but it worked out well for game prizes.
Also, since I found out I was having a girl I kept an eye on all things pink after Valentines day and took advantage of the clearanced out items the day after at Target. I ended up with a ton of prizes, candy, gift bags, decorations, etc that I was able to use and saved a lot of money on!
As far as decorations, the dollar stores in my area carried a nice variety, but I decided to go with a large 6 foot banner from Party City for $1, as well as garland and spring flower themed decorations for $1 each. I was also able to borrow large tissue paper flower puffs from a family friend. If you have to make them yourself, look at Pinterest, they are very easy and inexpensive. You can also purchase table cloths from the dollar store. I actually splurged and got vinyl ones for $3.50 each, but I am sure you could borrow or get away with the dollar store ones with no problem!
Games--I used a roll of crepe paper streamer I got for $.65 and had the ladies try to guesstimate my belly size. It lead to a lot of laughs and was inexpensive.
I purchased baby raffle tickets for $1.99 and had a large baby bottle that we drew from. That lasted for a few rounds and we also did 2 grand prizes (large gift giveaways) to end the games.
We also did a word scramble and a guessing game that I purchased for $6.00. These games are available online, but I was in a pinch and purchased them on the fly.
For invitations, I purchased clearanced DIY invites from Target for 70-80% off and found the matching Thank you notes a few weeks after for $2 a pack.
For utensils, I purchased the silverware at the dollar store, the napkins from big lots $2 a pack for pink 75 ct. The cups I also purchased from Big Lots $2.50 for 50 ct. Hefty brand. I purchased 2 packs of thermal cups with lids from the dollar store and plates from Aldi as that was the most inexpensive place--cost about $2.50 for 50 ct.
For favors, I purchased small plastic flower pots from the dollar store (12/$1) and since they were thin, doubled them up and filled with pink themed candy, stuffed with green Easter grass and stuck a packet of flower seeds in them as a thank you. You can throw in a poem as a thank you--for the ladies to plant the flowers and watch them grow and think of baby.
The menu was simple, I purchased most of the items from Aldi to save on money.
Menu:
Deli sandwiches on mini croissants or soft artisan rolls (It was recommended to me to purchase 6-7 lbs of meat for the event. In actuality I purchased 4 1/2 lbs of deli slices and had almost half left over to give away.
For cheese I purchased deli slices 12 in a pack for $1.99 at Aldi. I had cheddar, swiss, provolone and colby. I also had a pack of pepper jack that was not opened.
The rolls/croissants, I used approx 2 packs of mini croissants/rolls cut into halfs that ladies could make small sandwiches. I had a tray of croissants and a bag of artisan rolls left over.
Salad (used approx half a 5 lb bag)
2 dressings: Italian & ranch (had many other varities not open)
Veggie Tray ( 2 lg. cucumbers, 1 tub of cherry tomatoes, 1 red bell pepper, baby carrots)
Hummus (From Aldi)
Salsa (Aldi, $1.69 for a large jar)
French Onion Dip (A little over $3) had a lot left over
tray of Strawberries (Took advantage of a 10/$10 sale at Meijer) Used probably 4-5 pints, had half left over.
Bowl of honeydew and cantaloupe melons (took 1 melon each cut up) Had a lot left over.
Potato Salad
Crock pot of Baked Beans
Pampered Chef cold veggie pizza
Mini garlic bread "Sandwiches" cut into small squares, topped with pizza sauce, fresh mozzarella & spinach (Vegetarian Option) (only used 1 large loaf of frozen bread--purchased store brand $2 a loaf.)
Chicken Salad
Bowls of chips and pretzels around the room as centerpieces for people who want to chat & munch.
Desserts:
Cupcakes (funfetti & red velvet) with 1 can of frosting (Not homemade, but cost $2 total
Cookies $2.50 from Aldi
Donuts $2.50 from Aldi
Ice cream Bar:
-Purchased a large tub of Neopolitan ice cream from Aldi for $4.99
-Various cones, waffle bowls ($1 each box, generic brand)
-Sprinkles, coconut, candy like gummy bears, orange slices, maraschino cherries (all $1-2 each) and a bag of M&M's from Aldi
-Can of Whipped Cream less than $2
-Fudge sauce, caramel (Less than $2 each)
-Also made a "chocolate peanut butter eclair cake" that used a half box of chocolate graham crackers, 2 packs of Vanilla pudding, cool whip, peanut butter and a tub of chocolate frosting. I purchased everything generic.
Drinks:
Water bottles (24 for $2.75 at Aldi)
Name brand Soda (Purchased 10/$10 on sale, only used maybe 4.
I had the option of punch but ran out of time. You can use 2 liters of ginger ale, 1 frozen limeade and 1 frozen orange juice---delish!
Coffee (Keurig K-cups), tea (supplied from home & hot cocoa set out)
Purchased 1 large hazelnut creamer ($3)
I purchased a lot of the items that did not perish ahead of time and so saved money and time. I also had about 5-7 helpers and everyone loved it! Planning is key. Don't be afraid of just doing a simple punch and cake shower either. It doesn't have to be overboard but can be frugal & fun! Also ask your friends or relatives to possibly bring a dish, people don't mind! :)
My daughter is expecting her first baby in November and I'd love to organize a baby shower. I live in the UK and I haven't the faintest idea how to go about it. Any ideas and suggestions would most appreciated. Many thanks.
I've hosted several. The games are what breaks the ice, and gets everyone into having fun. Here are a couple that always are fun and one for a door prize.
I always give a door prize, that's meant for the winner to keep. For the other games, I give a dual prize - like a fragrant candle or small box of candy and a couple baby items. The idea is for the guest to keep the candle/candy, but give the baby items to the mom-to-be. Both guest and mom-to-be are winners.
1 - Door Prize - fill any size plasticware container with the favorite mini candy bars of the mom-to-be. In a basket, have white paper napkins folded like diapers and pinned shut. In the middle of one 'diaper', put a yellow or brown mustard smear - to suggest baby's' poop'. Pass out the diapers and have the guests open them at the same time. The 'lucky' guest, getting the 'poopy diaper', wins the candy tub.
2 - Ice Breaker - as guests arrive, have them cut any length of yarn they want, and then sit down. Once all the guests are there, begin with the person next to the mom-to-be, and while winding the yarn around their finger, tell the group, when/where/how they know the mom-to-be. They have to keep talking until their yarn piece is wound up.
3 - Mommies and Babies Game - you can find a listing of mommies and their babies online or in kids books. Make a list of Mommy names, like - Cat. Then, have a blank line next to it, where your guests would write in the matching baby name - Kitten. Make sure you get some more difficult ones, or you'll end up with a tie. The guest with the most correct answers wins a prize.
4 - Nursery Rhyme Game - a similar game is write out the first line of a nursery rhyme, and either fill in a couple of missing words or the next line. Again - the guest with the most correct wins a prize.
5 - How Big Is Momma's Belly - have each guest 'guess-timate' how big the mom-to-be's waist is, by cutting off a piece of yarn, which will be measured around her waist. The guest closest to the actual waist size wins a prize.
These are just a few ideas. Hope these will help, or inspire you to create your own!
Do some searching online & you will find a ton of great ideas for the baby shower. Do you have a theme yet?
I will include some pictures from the one I threw.
This is the guest book table.
