Showering Babies and Baby Showers

Until recently, I haven't felt like being an aunt even when I know well that I would soon be--especially through 2009. Among my 3 brothers, 2 of them are going to be dads very soon and talk mostly comprised of baby stuff.

The first dad-to-be among my brothers will have his baby late March or early April, as soon as the doctors give a go signal---CS Procedure. So much for planning, we totally forgot that we should be holding the baby shower soon. With two weeks left to spare for a full program, my cousin and I--the official event planners of the family--are left breathless/

I never planned a baby shower before, and until recently, I didn't really care. hehe. But now that Baby Showers will become one of my party types, I was able to list down the basic necessities of pre-celebrating births.

When and Where
The venue and time of day is perhaps the most important detail in any event. It dictates the kind of food, the people to invite, and the program that will be planned. For our baby shower, they chose our house as the venue, and meryenda time --afternoon snacks. hmmm...

Who
The Guest list is also an important aspect of a Baby shower. If you do not want to have friends and family fight during that moment of celebration, make sure you know who you are inviting. The kind of food and program will be planned according to their profile. It's important to send the correct message--the reason that they are there during the party is because they will be the most important people during the life of their child. The guest list will always have family and friends. But for baby showers, it is important to involve the god parents. Have that day be the official announcement of who the godparenets will be.

Food
Now that we know the time and place, it is important to note next what the guests would be eating. So, in our case, meryenda would be a lighter meal for everyone. For our baby shower, we might have pasta with garlic bread, pork barbecues, cordon bleu, chips and dip OR snack mix, cake and cupcakes, and cookies. Drinks could be soda, juice, coffee, or tea. Know your people. Know what they would like to eat. But do not forget that it should still be complementing to the event type. Since babies are also about soft and cuddly, make the food and buffet table just as appealing.

Decor
Now that you know the kind of space to work with, think of the decorating ideas. If you have a theme, go ahead. In our case, the couple would like to have angels as a theme. So the we thought that we might be able to put angel drawings or cartoon like designs printed. We'll have them on sticks and scatter them around the place. The house, for example, has a garden and the event would be taking place outside. It would be a good idea to have those pictures around. Have little white balloons as well to give the idea of clouds and floating. Also, since the couple wants the sex of the baby to be a surprise for them, chose the right colors. We're going to use peach and green. But for those who already know, pink and blue are common colors for girls and boys respectively.

Program and Games
Know the basic flow of an event. Remember that after the introduction, you feed your guests first. You don't want to ask them to play and make merry on an empty stomach. So when most of your guests are present and seated, you can ask them to eat. When the people are full, then you can ask them to burn all those energy with games. Online, there are a lot of game suggestions. Pick some that would fit the crowd you are working with. Otherwise, if you really like the basic mechanics of the game, alter some instructions so that it would also work with the guests. Events are not always about celebrating a commemorative moment in a person's life. It is about sharing it with other people, and having them remember that very special moment when you laughed so hard with y0ur family and friends.

The Shower Proper
A baby shower is a subtle expression of the couple to ask for gifts from their close family and friends. Baby stuff. After the food and games, the Shower Proper is the next step. Have all those involved and all those who came with gifts and ideas sit around. Sharings and memories are mostly picked here.

Final note, always remember to make it fun and just enjoy. It doesn't have to be perfect. It can be perfect just the way it is.