Baby Showers (Themes, Games) A tradition that was common among the Egyptians & Romans for centuries is still prevalent in today's society. During the last few decades many aspects of the 'Baby Shower' etiquette has changed. For example, baby showers were something that was done after the birth, it was only the Mother & her closest friends that attended & immediate family members never made the preparations (if they did, this was seen as the family asking for gifts). Nowadays, it is very commonplace for the Father-to-be & his friends to also attend & many baby showers are held before the baby is born & it is acceptable for immediate family or even the Mum-to-be to organise the baby shower.
Baby showers are a great opportunity for family & friends to offer support & share the excitement of the coming baby with the new parents-to-be. They also provide a chance for friends & family to help with some items that the new parents may need for the new arrival. You may like to get together with some of the other friends & all put in for a large gift, or everyone buy many items to make up a hamper. Instead of using a basket for the hamper, a baby bath or nappy bucket make a fantastic & useful alternative. Fill it with lotions, shampoo, toys, nappies (make sure they are going to use the type you buy), bottles, baby wipes & don't forget Mum & Dad with some massage oil (get a recipe here), bubble bath & any other pampering ideas you may thing of. You could also put in little hand made vouchers offering to baby sit, be a maid for a day or a spare handyman to give Dad a break too. You don't have to build an extension on the house! But little things like mowing the lawn, weeding the garden, vacuuming the house, doing the dishes or doing some washing are some of the things that many new parents just don't have time for with a new baby. Another gift that is sure to be greatly appreciated is prepared meals. You can either cook it there while they rest & relax with baby or drop it off so all they have to do is put it in the oven and enjoy! These may seem like such tiny things, but they would mean so much to a new family.
Many baby showers have a theme & lots of fun games to play. Themes are only limited to your imagination so here are a small few to get your creative juices flowing; Tea Party, Pampering Mum Party (gorgeous chocolates, fancy decorations & beautiful flowers are the go for this one), any children's character, everyone comes pregnant! (get out the pillows!), run a raffle for the guests, the prize could be a wonderful hamper filled with chocolates, wine, cheese & crackers, candles, etc. But to enter the draw to win it, the guests each have to 'buy' a ticket, the 'price' could be something like a packet of wipes & a packet of nappies. Of course they can enter as many times as they like :) If the parents are using cloth nappies, just substitute the packet of nappies with a couple of other items the guests can choose from such as nappy washing solution, baby wash, baby cotton buds, etc.
What shower is complete without games! Here are a few you may like to play at your baby shower;
Get a roll of toilet paper, string or ribbon, pass it around to all the guests that each tear off the length they think will reach around the Mum-to-be, the closest one wins a prize!