The key to motherhood in the twenty-first century can be summed up in one word: efficiency. Helping the new mother achieve efficiency can start with her baby shower. Here are a few ideas to make the baby shower easy.
First, what kind of crowd is invited to the baby shower? If the guest of honor's friends and family are scattered around the country, an internet baby shower may be in order. This is when the hostess opens a chat room with all of the guests logged in. Webcams are used to capture all of the fun and a website can remain posted until after the baby is born for guests to leave comments and well wishes.
If the guest list is limited to a small group of women, consider simply having dinner out at a favorite restaurant or having a group trip to a local spa. In this way, the new mother has both her baby shower and quality time with her friends, and the hostess has an easy preparation and clean up.
Consider making the baby shower a shopping trip. Have the guests bring gift cards to certain stores, then everyone will participate in picking out items for the new baby. This way, the guest of honor does not have to make a registry, and returning items should be much easier.
Of course, nowadays, men are often welcome at a baby shower. Having a coed party allows the entire community to welcome the child and also provides the hostess with a greater variety of themes, games, and settings. .
With games, you have a chance to entertain as well as help the new mother. Ask guests to think of the best piece of realistic advice they have, and then have them write it in the guestbook. Odds are an experienced parent will have golden tips that would never occur to new parents. You can also have guests bring their easiest dinner recipe, something that can be made in 20 minutes or less (microwaving a frozen dinner is not allowed!).
Finally, let all of the guests know that efficiency is the keyword for the baby shower. Have them purchase gifts with that in mind. A great help to the mother is a pre-packed diaper bag. Also, while newborn clothes are often given at baby showers, there is never enough sized 6-12 months. An unusual, but excellent, gift is a slow cooker. For a new mother, time is at a premium, and any gift that cuts down on meal preparation is welcomed. Along similar lines, guests can give homemade frozen meals. The parents will appreciate being able to have a complete healthy meal without the effort. Another option is giving the parents coupons good for either babysitting or errand runs. Offering to take care of time consuming tasks even a couple times a month will lift a huge burden from the new mother.
The modern mother is always seeking a better way to streamline chores and to be more efficient. The guests at her baby shower can help her achieve those goals, and making life a little easier for new mother will give her greater opportunities to enjoy parenthood.