Any girl who has a bunch of girlfriends will know that when the days are counting down before your bump arrives, it is quite likely (in the last few years especially) that you will be invited to a baby shower to celebrate the forthcoming bundle of joy!!  Any excuse for a get together I say!!

These are pretty new in the UK and only something I had seen on telly from the USA.  I did always wonder what all the fuss was about but when I had my last baby I was very lucky to have a lovely shower thrown in my honour by a fab bunch of girlies and had such a great time, I would thoroughly recommend them to one and all!!

My friend hosted it at her house which was the perfect venue as after we had eaten dinner we were able to retire to the lounge for present opening which was ideal as I was 8 months pregnant at the time and feeling just a little large and uncomfortable so a nice sofa to sink into was just what the doctor ordered towards the end of the evening!!  Of course if you decided to do it a little earlier in your friends pregnancy a restaurant would be another possible option although in my opinion maybe a bit of a hassle if everyone is bringing presents to open and you are planning a theme which maybe tricky to do in a venue that has rules and regs re decoration etc.

I think the general rule re present giving at a shower should be a token gift. This will obviously depend on the budget available to those attending the shower but to ensure no one is put under pressure to spend money they don’t have (especially during the old credit crunch!!) i think it best to think along the lines of something small. Many people buying something for the shower may well be wishing to be another gift when the baby arrives and they know the name/sex etc. The issue of not knowing the sex of the baby will probably mean you will be wanting to buy something generic for the shower and then a more expensive and sex specific gift once you know what your friend has had. Tweetie Twoo Gift Set

I already knew I was having a boy, which made life easier in terms of a theme and gifts for me.  I received some beautiful clothes, little decorative items for his nursery, and some very cute little toys too. However some others girls bought something for me personally instead which was very sweet and a lovely thought when at this stage the focus is mainly the baby rather than you!!

Everyone gets so excited about meeting the forthcoming arrival that they forget you’re the one bringing it into the world – great eh!!

There are so many lovely pamper items you can buy a mummy to be – whether it is bath/shower bits, massage oil, cooling leg and foot gel (ideal for the those poor ladies with huge swollen ankles!!) or chocolate is always a winner – something yummy for them to munch on in their final days of maternity leave or even to take into hospital for when they get hungry in the early hours!!  One of my friends created a little bag of goodies for me which was such a fab present – it had a magazine, my favourite sweets, a tiny bottle of perfume (which any mum who has been in hospital giving birth will know that to spray something sweet smelling and fresh on you after having your baby makes you feel human again!!!), a throw away camera, some face moisturising cream and a book!!  Every item was used and it really was such a thoughtful and useful present.  The contents can obviously be changed to suit your friend personally.

I would say a baby shower towards the end of the pregnancy is the best idea time wise, as this gives the mum to be something special to look forward to in those final boring weeks while waiting for the baby to appear and while feeling pretty fat and fed up!! It’s a lovely excuse to see your mates (possibly for the last time in a little while!!) and dress up for the night to make yourself feel good.  Although it is also important to work out dates to make sure you are not too late in the day and end up losing your baby shower guest of honour because she is in labour….so around 7/8 months is ideal as will give a month or two to allow for babies who decide to make an early appearance!!

I would say there is no reason to spend a fortune on a baby shower. A simple dinner at your home with a few close friends, lots of giggles and lots of baby talk is perfect.  My friend did a few little extra touches, which looked beautiful but did not cost the earth. The table was decorated white with a few silver and blue balloons scattered around the room and a little blue bag of chocolate was on each person’s place setting.  She had designed the place settings herself by cutting out white card and then printing off a picture of each guests’ child (this was my second baby so all my friends there had a child already) and stuck it on the card as their place setting instead of their name.  It was so personal and she had put so much effort into something that everyone could take home with them and keep forever.  She had written a little poem about the event next to the photos as a reminder of what the place setting was for. (my friend is particularly creative but if you have it in you time and imagination wise the world is your oyster in terms of what you do to make the night special with spending lots of money to achieve it)

After dinner, some wine (non alcoholic for me sadly!!) lots of nattering and present opening, we played some silly girly/baby related games which were hilarious!!  One friend had cut out pictures of celebrities when they were babies and we had to guess who they were, then we played pin the dummy on the baby, and then i had to be blindfolded and taste baby food and guess what i was eating – I must say some were delicious and others were truly disgusting and i made a mental note ever to feed them to my poor baby!!!  These are just a few ideas for baby shower games but you can Google other suggestions if you need further inspiration!!  (i had heard about one game involving melted chocolate in nappies which sounded interesting!!!!!…..)

I personally think many ideas which come over from the USA are questionable but having been the delighted guest of honour at a baby shower i really think they are a lovely way to celebrate the arrival of a new baby into your group of friends, a good excuse to get all your lovely girlfriends together for the night without children in tow, receive some gorgeous presents for your little one and just have a good giggle before the hard work starts once bump turns to baby!!!

Go with the flow with your ideas, you will know your friend better than anyone and know what things she will love/hate, whether she would enjoy games or would rather have a more reserved affair, what theme would be personal to her and whether she would want an intimate selection of friends or a great big group there for the occasion.

Any mummy to be would be thrilled to be invited and would enjoy every minute so make sure you enjoy it with them whatever you end up doing!!