Baby Shower

Why Have A Baby Shower?

Having a baby is a daunting task to begin with. Having to think about all the preparations and what the baby needs can be tough, especially for first-time parents. Let alone, how expensive baby stuff are nowadays. Diapers, milk, clothes, skincare products, the list could go on.

On top of that, planning baby showers for first-time expecting moms and dads and even those who are already parents can be overwhelming too. You want the moment to be special and memorable, and so you want everything to come together perfectly.

Often, the reason why planning baby showers become overwhelming is because most expecting moms wanted to do a baby shower that hasn’t been done before. Hence, they end up having a difficult time deciding how do it.

Well, hey there moms-to-be, let me tell you – every baby shower is special even though your baby shower idea seems to be like the ones you’ve seen on TV or on the internet, yours is unique in its own special way. So, don’t stress yourself so much.

In fact, you can use those baby showers you have seen on the internet as an inspiration for planning your own.

But before you start worrying about the theme, venue, food, and everything else. Perhaps it would relax you, and instead enjoy the moment for the coming of your bundle of joy by reminding yourself why you have to have a baby shower.

So what are baby showers for?

Baby shower is a party, a celebration for the impending birth of a new baby. Everyone close to the mom-to-be gather around to have fun and be grateful for the blessing of a new life.

The center of this celebration is the mom-to-be and of course, the baby-to-be. Because the preparation for the coming of the baby can be overwhelming for the expecting moms or the parents, the very purpose of this party is give not only the mom-to-be but both parents-to-be the emotional support. As well as, bring items and stuff that the baby or the mom-to-be will need as gift for the mom-to-be.

Baby shower is not all fun and parties, but really it’s a way for family and friends to give their support and assistance to the mom-to-be and parents-to-be while having some party on the side. So, it’s really a moment of gifting, sharing and above all showing love.

It is to help first-time parents or even second, third-time or so parents get over the anxieties of bringing up children, the worries of “do I have enough for my baby?” and to help not only emotionally but mentally prepare parents-to-be, especially the mom-to-be for the task coming.

So, don’t stress so much about the details of the baby shower, it doesn’t have to be grand or fancy for the party to be special. It just has to be something that you feel is right for you and your baby. Often, the most memorable and special baby showers are those that are simple and heartfelt, those DIY baby showers where the mom-to-be and family and friends work together to prepare.

It is the laughters, dancing, photos, and the sweets that make for a great baby shower. And finally, YOU mom-to-be will be an awesome mom. Enjoy every moment of it because they fly by so fast.

Baby Shower Themes for Boys or Girls

There are expecting parents who does not want to know the gender of their baby ahead of birth. They want to be surprised, and I like that idea personally. Sometimes, knowing the gender of the baby ahead complicates the preparations – “will pink or yellow suit my baby girl?” “Is blue perfect for my baby boy?” “Should I have barbie theme  or superman theme for the baby shower?” “Should I get this or that?” and on and on it goes.

Sometimes it’s easier when you don’t know the gender of baby. You are more carefree and you get to really enjoy the excitement instead of being stressed-out to find what is perfect for your baby.

I think you will have more choices that way, especially when it comes to baby shower themes.

A lot of expecting moms and even dads couldn’t decide on a theme for their baby shower. Again, because they are boxed in the idea of “this is perfect for a girl or a boy.” So, why not opt for a theme that will suit whether you’re having a girl or boy?

Here some of the favorites and most exciting baby shower themes whether you’re having a boy or girl.

  1.   SAFARI THEME
This is one of the easiest but fun theme to create. It is pretty easy to create a jungle-inspired decoration. This theme will be perfect to have outdoors, and you can even have it at your own garden.

Gather old and new animal stuff toys – monkeys, tigers, giraffes and all others you have. Have some green and gold pillow and place them in nooks and crannies. Then, scatter red balloons all over the place.

For the invitation, you can write something like, “let us go for an adventure.”

Set-up wood tables and chairs, place some veggies and fruits, and lemonades. Or better yet, guest could sit on mats on the grass, sort of like a garden picnic.

This outdoor theme, with lots of greens, vibrant colors from fruits and balloons, and the cute animal stuff toys will give you and your guest opportunity for some great jungle-like photos.

  2.   UNDER THE SEA THEME
This theme would be great to do by the sea, can be indoors too. You can easily tranform your indoor venue and give it a feel of Princess Ariel’s under the sea world.

For the decoration, use shades of blue and white. You can decorate the place with life-size fish, jellyfish and some seashells. It will also be great to do them yourself, maybe with some friend and loved ones where you can do cut-outs or better yet, paint them.

If you can, there are also inflatted balloons of giant fish or seashells.
You can scatter blue balloons around the place.

For the food, you can prepare some seafood dishes and beach snacks. And instead of the usual cupcakes, you can have some jello and fish gummies.

And you can also play that little mermaid song while the party is going on or some beach vibe songs. Perhaps one your guests could play some guitar, that would be fun.

  3.   WINNIE THE POOH THEME
Pooh bear and his friends is one of the favorites and most popular theme for a baby shower. There are plenty of adorable characters in winnie-the-pooh that will provide lots of fun photo opportunity.

For the decoration, you can create a nostalgic atmosphere using graphics or illustrations. You can also decorate the place with stuff pooh bears and his friends or any plush animals or toy figures, and scatter red and yellow balloons all over the place.

Bake some cupcakes with white or nude icings and top them with little berries and some glazed donuts.

And for your invites, you can write something like, “we’re going to see pooh bear and his companions.”

Finally, you don’t have to buy new stuff for these themes and they are easy to create. You can recycle old toys and other materials. The great thing about these themes is that they have rich characters for your props and decors, which you can do with your loved one and friends. Thus, providing you opportunity to bond with them and celebrate while preparing for baby shower.

Baby Shower Themes for Boys

Hey there moms-to-be and dads-to be. Are you expecting a baby boy? Well then, you’re in for an exciting ride.

Organizing baby shower for boys is much fun as organizing one for baby girls. You can play around different cool themes that can be as colorful as for girls but still appear masculine.

Baby shower themes for boys may not be glittering like for girls but they are a lot playful to work around, goofy and exciting.

If you can’t decide which theme to have for your baby shower, here are some cool ideas that may help you.

  1.   COWBOY THEME

This is a favorite and definitely one of the best baby shower theme for boys. Cowboys never gets old. It’s a cool theme that is rustic but really playful.

gives you opportunity to play around entertaining decorations and props. You and your guest could dress-up and wear cowboy hats and boots which will make beautiful and memorable photographs.

You can set the mood for a charming country theme by decorating your venue with cowboy props and give your guest the feel of being in ranch. Place around cowboy hats and boots, and some bales of hay at the doorstep. You can also put a couple horse sticks and if you have some racking horses.

You can hang some guitars on the wall for your guest who might want to play them, and play some beautiful or upbeat country tunes while the party is going on. Or everyone can dance along with for the party.

For your invitation, you can announce to your guest that you are expecting a baby boy by writing something like “a cute cowboy is coming!” Or simply put some cute horses and cowboy hats and they’ll know.

You don’t have to buy new stuff, you can recycle some red hankies for table napkins, some old cowboy hats and boots for your decors and some old horse toys that you could place on the cake.

You could gather around your garden  and place some traditional rustic or wooden tables and chairs. And your baby shower will truly have a feel of hee-yah!

  2.   MUSTACHE THEME

This theme is another cool idea for a fun-filled baby shower that will give you and your guest lots of goofy photo opportunities.

Baby showers does not need to formal. It is supposed to be fun and exciting.

For your invites, you can use colorful patterns to bring out the black mustache design, and put some wording like “a little man is on his way” to inform your guest that you are expecting a boy.

You can decorate you venue with vibrant colors  using balloons or use some shades of blue for your tables to contrast the black color of mustache props that you can place around the walls or stick on the colorful ballons.

You can also use mustache rings to wrap around the table napkins, place some tiny mustaches on sticks and place them on the cake and cupcakes, fill mason jars with flowers, and place a sign on the refreshment table that says something like “wet your whisker.”

And finally you can set-up a dessert table on the corner with colorful sweets and splurge them with tiny colorful balloons and scatter cut-out little mustaches on the table.

  3.   NAUTICAL THEME

When you’re expecting a baby boy, the color that comes to mind is always blue. What better theme to have than this?

You can decorate your whole venue from the tables to chairs with props and decors in shades of blue on white. And splurge it with some red balloons to make the blue stand out.

You can set the mood and transport your guest and give them the feel of as if having a party on the boat. For your centerpiece use colorful flowers placed in blue vases, use white and blue covers for the tables, chairs, and blue rings or little anchor rings around white table napkins. You can decorate your venue with sailor caps and place fishing nets on the table, and hang some plastic or improvised anchor on the wall. This will give your guest the nautical feel.

You can inform your guests that you’re expecting a baby boy by writing on your invites something like “let’s sail away to meet our new crew.”

This theme would be great do have on the beach or if not, atleast outdoors. You and the guests especially dads-to-be can dress in navy uniforms or as a sailorman. That would be cool, especially for the photos.

Finally, baby showers need not to be extravagant to be special and memorable. You just need to be creative and play around using old stuff and turning them into something fun. You can mix-up two or more themes, for instance the cowboy and mustache themes would be extra fun. You can also combine mustache and nautical themes, that will make the latter theme less formal and goofy.

Don’t get stuck with these themes, these are just ideas to help you decide.  There are plenty of others you can use or come up with. Go for what you feel is right for you, and will give you and your loved ones the special moment to really enjoy and celebrate, and make beautiful memories.

Baby Shower Themes for Girls

In every occasion, it is the “theme” that makes it extra especial and truly memorable. Baby Shower is one of the most exciting occasion there is, especially for mom-to-be and even dad-to-be and their loved ones. That is why, it is important to work around a theme that will help bring everything together – from the invitation, décor, food, gifts, games and more.

If you’re having a hard time figuring out which theme is the best, here are some brilliant ideas for baby girl showers.

We have seen a lot of baby girl showers, from rainbows to butterflies and strawberries. Here are some of the favorites and most loved baby shower theme for girls.

  1. ADORABLE UNICORN THEME
    If you have watched a fairy tale movie or two, then you would have encountered unicorns. Unicorns were part of many loved fairy tales, so having this theme for such a special occasion will make it magical.
    For the invitations, you can play around with fun visuals using pastel shades or rainbow hues. And for the wordings, you can add something like “a special day is on the way!”
    You can decorate the venue with pastel shades of greens, purples, and pinks with scattered dusts of gold and silver.
    Pastel shades or rainbow hues also work well in floral arrangements with a fairytale inspiration. Have a couple of pom poms, decorate the tables with cute pastel color unicorns and have a do-it-yourself unicorn head to serve as your centerpiece.
    For snacks, these theme gives you an opportunity to be creative and extra colorful. You can decorate your cakes and cupcakes with little cute pastel unicorns and toss it with colorful candy sprinkles.
  1. BARBIE THEME
    A Barbie theme is a party for sure where you can play around different shapes, colors and materials that will delight both the young and young-at-heart guests. Who doesn’t love Barbie? So, if you are expecting a baby girl, then this is the perfect theme for your baby shower.
    You and your guest, and everyone could play dress-up or wear costumes to begin with. Wear some colorful wigs and chic make-up.
    For decorations, you can go big with decoration with Malibu moments, use colorful shades and hang ribbons, fur, glitters, and make your party pop with balloons everywhere.
    This theme also gives you the opportunity to be creative with not only the decors but also decorating cakes and cupcakes with colorful candy sprinkles. For your centerpiece, you can place tiny colorful balloons and tiny barbie shoes and bags. Finally, have in your backdrop “C’mon Barbie, Let’s go party!”
  1. FAIRYTALE THEME
    We all love fairytales, girls especially. Having a fairytale theme for your baby shower allows you and your guests to step into that whimsical wonderland of fairies and butterflies and rainbows.
    For the decoration, you can start with you can have a backdrop of dreamy shade like purple and accentuate it with wisteria flowers and colorful butterflies.
    Turn your venue into an enchanted forest by hanging colorful flowers and butterflies, clouds made from tulle. For the centerpiece, you can have tiered castle cake tossed with gold and silver dust. Illuminate the whole venue with twinkling lights to create an illusion of stars and fairies flying around.
    This dreamy theme is truly a “happy ever after.”

There are a lot more themes you can come up with. The important thing is to know the gender of your baby, and the season when your bundle of joy will arrive. You can also have a mix of two or three themes. For instance, you can have a fairytale and unicorn theme or a princess barbie theme. Work around a theme that you feel will help your special occasion become magical and memorable for you mom-to-be or dad-to-be, above all.

Finally, baby showers need not be too expensive and grandiose to be extra special and memorable. Always opt for DIY centerpieces, decors and snacks. You can also find less pricey materials. All you need is to be creative and a pair of extra hands from your loved ones and friends. After all, it’s the love and people who will come that will make the occasion truly special and memorable.

Free Baby Shower Invitations

Warning: Creating your own baby shower invitations can be hazardous to your health

I say that half jokingly, but let me share a little story with you to show you what I mean.

After the story, I’ll give you some great tips about creating your own baby shower invitations, which I learnt the hard way from trial and error.

I wanted to pull my hair out…

The first time I planned a baby shower, I was on a tight budget, but I realized how important the invitations were, so I wanted them to be perfect. After all, the invitations create the first impression of the party. And let’s face it, if they’re boring or ugly, the invited guests will subconsciously start off with a bad taste in their mouth.

Admittedly, I’m not a very artistic person, so my first experience trying to create my own baby shower invitations from scratch using free images and card templates I found on the Internet almost caused me to pull my hair out! It took so much time and energy that it almost drove me crazy.

And the printing. Don’t even get me started on that!

I designed a folding card with words on the inside, so I had to run the card through my inkjet printer twice – once for the front of the card and once for the inside. I kept putting them in the wrong way and printing the words upside down! Yeah…I’m spatially challenged 🙂

What a waste of money and paper it was. My printer also struggled with the thickness of the card stock. A couple of times, the paper got stuck and it kept printing over and over on the same line. What a disaster! Let’s just say that my printing adventure caused me to blow my budget.

Anyway, the invitations turned out quite nice, and my girlfriend was pleased, but it was not an experience I care to repeat ever again. I’ve thrown many parties since (my friends call me the “Baby Shower Queen” now) and now I find it easy and stress-free (actually fun!) to create invitations but it took lots of trial and error and research online.

If you want to avoid the same sort of catastrophe and just want to get going, here is a fabulous site that I find to be tremendously helpful. I always get my cards here.

Finestationary.com – I just love this site. It has so many beautiful cards, I often lose myself while I’m there! Lots and lots of fabulous choices. Prices range from inexpensive to expensive. You can get blank cards if you want to create your own design or print the cards by yourself, as well as pre-printed cards.

You can also personalize your card by changing the wording, the type style and ink color. There’s even a neat little feature to help you with the wording on the card. Once you’ve personalized the card, you can preview what it will look like. Very cool!

How to create your own shower invitations
only for the brave of heart

1. The first thing you’ll want to do is decide whether you want a flat card or a folding card.

I highly recommend you choose a flat card because if you’re planning on doing the printing yourself, they are much easier to deal with.

2. The next thing you want to decide what kind of paper to use for the cards. For example, you can use standard photocard paper or cardstock.

I recommend using a medium to heavy weight card stock, about 65-104 Ib. This is important because if the paper is too thin, the card will feel cheap and flimsy, which will create a bad impression (if only subconsciously).

Important! Remember that the thicker the paper, the harder it will be for your printer to handle. Make sure your printer is compatible with the paper before you buy!

One example of blank cards is “Personal Creations Ink Jet Greeting Cards” (by Avery). You should be able to get them at your local office supply or stationery store.

Another alternative is at finestationery.com. Click on “BABY” at the top, then select “Price” in the drop down menu on the right. There you’ll see several choices for a whole set of blank cards with envelopes in pretty colors.

3. Once you’ve bought some cardstock, you’ll want to set up Microsoft Word or whichever word processing software you use to design your card.

Create a template that is the same size as the cardstock. Click on File > Page Setup > Page tab, and then choose the size from the Paper Size drop-down menu.

4. If you want to add a background image or various images, you can get some free clipart directly from MS Word by choosing the Insert menu > Picture > Clip Art One thing about the MS Word clip art is it looks kind of cheesy to be honest.

You can also insert a photograph of the expecting mother on the card. You’ll just need a digital photo of her to do that. Insert menu > Picture > From File …

A site I highly recommend for clipart is istockphoto.com.

If you want to write a message over the picture or image, right-click on the image > Format Picture… > Layout tab > Behind text.

You can then write your message on top of the image.

5. Now it’s time to add text to your card. Try different fonts to see which one suits your card the best. I like the brush scripts the best, but it depends on what looks best for your card.

6. The last step is to print the cards. If you’re printing them yourself, I suggest doing a test run on regular paper first so you don’t waste the special paper for the cards, which can be expensive.

Make sure you’re totally happy with the way everything looks before doing the actual printing.

When you’re happy with everything, print only one card with the thick cardstock to begin with just to make sure you’re printer can handle the paper properly.

If that one goes perfect, then you’re ready to print the entire batch!

An alternative to consider for printing is taking your MS Word file to your local print shop for printing. The quality will be excellent…but it will be costly.

Another possibility is to use an online printing shop like vistaprint.com. All you do is upload your design (you’ll need to convert your MS Word file into Adobe PDF format), and they’ll print your cards for you and send them to you.As you’ve heard a million times before, nothing in life is free. While it’s nice to use your creativity and artistic ability to create the cards yourself, and your girlfriend will surely appreciate your effort, quality blank cards, printer ink and envelopes will actually end up costing about the same as personalized pre-designed cards.

Also, don’t forget your time (and sanity 🙂 ).

Be prepared to spend lots of time designing your own cards if you’re doing it for the first time. From my experience, you’ll get the best and quickest results from an online card company where you can personalize the cards the way you want.

Baby Shower