Articles:
Party Planning:
Party Dress Code Deciphered
Building Your Party Timeline
Preparing Your Shopping List
Corporate Event Planning Tips
How to Host a Cocktail Party
Preparing your Home for a Party
Party Occasions:
Memorial Day Quiz
4th of July and Patriotic Facts
Have an Outdoor Summer Party
Halloween Spooktacular Party Ideas
How to Rock your Christmas Party
Have a Cinco de Mayo Fiesta...Ole!
Kentucky Derby Party Ideas
Recipes:
What are you serving?
Baby:
What type of Baby Shower?
Baby Shower Planning
Children:
First Birthday Party Planning
Second Birthday Party Ideas
How to Plan a Birthday Party
Birthday Traditions to Start
Ultimate Tween Girl Slumber Party
First Communion Planning
What is First Communion?
How To:
Tie Bows on Invitations
General Info:
Invitation Do's & Don'ts
What to include on Invitations
When to mail invitations
Apostrophes-When and Where
RSVP Etiquette
RSVP vs. Regrets Only
What type of Baby Shower?
It is preferable to mail baby shower invitations 3-4 weeks in advance of the party date, but even 2 weeks can be enough provided your most important guests (immediate family) know of the baby shower party date in advance and have marked their calendars. Remember when selecting the date for your baby shower, babies do come early so don't wait too close to the anticipated due date or baby's untimely arrival may have you scrambling for a new date. See below for ideas on the different types of baby showers you may want to consider.
Traditionally, baby showers have been for women only and usually in the home of the hostess. When planning a baby shower, consider a girls only baby shower where stories are told of pregnancy, labor and surviving the sleepless nights to come. A brunch, lunch or a tea are great options for afternoon baby showers. For evenings, you might consider a buffet or a sit down dinner at your home or a restaurant with a room large enough to accommodate your group.
Couples baby showers are becoming more popular. Dad has been included in the pregnancy and labor classes, so why not include him in the baby shower too. Men also might enjoy reminiscing about their own experiences of being a new dad. Friday, Saturday nights or Sunday afternoon are good times for couples to clear their schedule to attend your party. A cookout or a buffet keeps guests circulating. A cocktail or hors d'oeuvres and dessert party early in the evening might be ideal.
A baby shower for family only is a great excuse for a family reunion. If your family is scattered around the area or the country, you might want to consider having the shower after the birth of the baby so that everyone can see the new addition to the clan and enjoy a baby shower at the same time. There will be plenty of women glad to help hold and cuddle a new baby so the new mother can enjoy the day.
No more guessing, you know know it's a boy or girl and unisex gifts don't have to be the only option. An added bonus is showing off the new baby! It is a little harder to plan a baby shower for after the birth as babies don't always arrive on their due dates. Make the baby shower date for at least 4-6 weeks after the expected due date and even in the event the baby's two weeks overdue, your shower date should be okay. Just remember, the new parents will probably be sleep deprived so make the shower short and early in the day.
A small pizza party-baby shower combo might be a fun way to shower a co-worker. Everyone pitches in for the food and even a group gift. Schedule the party before her maternity leave (some mom's change their mind and decide not to come back to work) in a restaurant, a corner of the company's lunch room or an after hours party when the office has cleared out.
A fun way to surprise the mother-to-be is to make her believe she is attending something else. A lunch with the girls, meet at Sally's house to go to the movies, a shopping date with her sisters, you get the idea. The father-to-be can offer to drop her off and plan for someone else to bring her home. You'll definitely need the father-to-be or guest of honor's mother's help on this one so you, the party planner, aren't the one who ends up surprised if the guest of honor backs out at the last minute.
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...Preparing your Home for a Party
