Traditionally baby showers are celebrated in countries like the USA and in recent years, it has been growing in popularity in the UK. Now and then, you may get invited to a baby shower or maybe help organise one too! I am so pleased to be ask to help organise games for my Chinese friend.
As for Chinese customs, this is traditionally celebrated one month after the baby is born – Full Month celebration. This also coincides with the end of the new mum’s confinement period. During the confinement period, visiting the new mum and baby is not advisable. The full month is the day where both mother and baby are introduced to the extended relatives and friends.
As we’re in the UK, my friend wanted to follow the western baby shower custom and ignore her own Chinese culture. I personally think this is a great idea! Not only can the mum-to-be can save money on baby essentials, she can also spend more time resting than doing more shopping!
Planning: Set a Date and Venue!
The ideal time for a baby shower is during the last trimester and don’t wait until the end of trimester as it will be too late. Normally people have it in their home, but if inconvenient, you might want to hire a meeting room or hall.
Set a theme!
A baby shower is like any other party where you can have themes. It also makes it a lot easier to organise the items you need for your party. It can be in an elegant manner or perhaps a colour scheme if you know the sex of your baby or set it as neutral if you are throwing a gender reveal party! You can get your baby shower party decorations easily from supermarkets, Hobbycraft or online etc.
Who to invite?
Traditionally this is a party for women only as the original intent was for women to share wisdom and lessons on the art of becoming a mother. Now you can invite women only or anyone you or mum-to-be wishes to share this moment with. If you are bringing your little one, you might want to check out these Kids party dresses for this occasion.
Yummy Food and Drink
Let’s face it, no one will expect you to prepare a three-course meal for your guests. Get home delivery for plenty of finger foods and nibbles like sandwiches, cakes, pizzas, sausage rolls, Pandan lollipop cookies etc. Also not forgetting perhaps a glass of prosecco or two for the guests.
Planning Games Time
This is what I am going to do for my friend’s baby shower! You can buy many ready-made games online or plan your own. The first game you can play is to guess the waistline of mum-to-be by using a string and write down your answer on a sheet of paper. The closest will win a prize.
The second game is to guess the baby food. Blindfold your guests and present them with a range of baby foods to guess.
Next you can play guess the baby photos. Get your guests to bring a baby photo and try to figure out who’s who. Or you can play silly games like dirty nappies, teat bobbing etc. I think I might be planning to play pin the sperm on the egg!
What to buy?
It is always best to have the mum-to-be choose a gift list for family and friends to buy practical gifts for baby that she really wants and needs. My friend is having a girl and she has asked for newborn baby girl dresses as her first born is a son so she doesn’t have any hand-me-down clothing!
Goody Bag
Last but not least, get some goody bags as a thank you gift for them for attending your baby shower.
I hope this guide gives you some inspiration on what to organise for your baby shower.
Disclosure: This is a featured post.
