Hosting a Baby Shower After the Birth

While it's more common to have the baby shower before the baby is born, more parents are choosing to do so after the birth. Actually, that is a wonderful idea since the baby shower can be centered around the baby and the guests can give gifts that are more in tune with the baby's sex and also the size!

The clear star of the show here is the baby. There will be no better topic of conversation and icebreaker than that.

However, planning the baby shower takes a little more thought. You'll need to coincide the party with the baby's waking schedule first! It would be rather disappointing for the guests to come in and find the baby asleep and then have to keep quiet so he won't wake up. That said, it's easiest to hold the shower in the parents' house so the baby needn't be moved from one place to another. A second option would be to have the baby shower in a private party room.

Your invitations should show off the baby. Why not incorporate a picture taken when the baby was just born? You could include a caption that says “Welcome to the World!” or “Come and Meet Me!” on the front of the card. If you like, it can double as a birth announcement as well.

The way the baby shower should be arranged should be quite simple, easy to put up and quick to take down. You wouldn't want to leave a mess nor put up very complicated decorations that are difficult to remove. Keep the main parts of the décor large so you draw attention to them easily.

For example, you can put up large bouquets in the corners in either the colors of the nursery or in a color scheme that the mom prefers. Houseplants could be embellished with either fresh or artificial flowers to make them more cheery. Balloons are an easy way to add a sense of “party” to the room and a large banner welcoming the baby would be decorations enough.

When the guests arrive, why not have a photo session with the baby? If the child is fretting, though, it may be better to let mom hold him instead and have them both pose with the guest. A quick print of the picture can be part of the party favor that you'll hand out afterward. If you have the time, and on a “Thanks for Coming Over!” onto the printed photo.

Meals should be just as uncomplicated. Why not serve a buffet of cheese, cold cuts, and various types of bread? If the parents are up to it, you can add a wine selection to the usual soda, juice, coffee, and tea. Or cut straight to the chase and simply have a choice of three types of dessert and a coffee and tea bar.

Don't miss out on the chance to have baby-themed products at your baby shower. Choose prettily-themed paper plates, napkins and cutlery on which to serve your food. If you want to embellish it a little more, use ribbon bows to tie the cutlery and napkins together and arrange them in a little basket or bucket like flowers.

Games are definitely in order. Why not use the birth announcement card as a basis for the game? Have a trivia game with the information about the baby as the answers, from the full name, the time of birth, even the birth weight. It's a great way to get to know the baby better.