Planning Your Baby Shower

Planning your baby shower can be fun if you approach it right. Use these tips to guide your decision making as you consider what kind of baby shower you want to have.

Set The Right Date

Conventional wisdom states that you should give yourself at least two months to plan your shower, and that the date of the shower should fall somewhere in your third trimester. Ideally, it will be toward the beginning of that period.

Setting a baby shower date during your first trimester jumps the gun a little bit, and waiting until the last minute can be hectic. Give yourself time to think about what you want and build a registry. But, don’t wait too long. Think about your guests when you pick a date as well. Avoid major holidays, school breaks and other scheduling barriers as much as possible. If you’re due in mid-January, for example, you may want to plan your shower on the early side to avoid Thanksgiving and the hectic winter party schedule of December.

Decide Who Is Hosting

Most baby showers are hosted and planned (at least in part) by a close friend of the parents-to-be. This is one of those old-school etiquette protocol choices that people tend to follow due to tradition. Some people apparently feel that it appears greedy for family members to host the party.

If you’re a modern mama unconcerned with traditional social rules, you can decide to host and plan the party yourself. There are distinct benefits to having someone else host though. So, even if you aren’t terribly concerned with tradition, you still might want to let someone else take responsibility for setup, cleanup and everything in between.

Choose A Theme

Themed baby showers are easy for a few specific reasons. One, they make detail-based decisions, like what color the napkins should be and what kind of invites to get, super simple. Two, they allow you to turn your nursery theme into the focus of the party. This gives guests a good guide for what to look for if they decide to shop for an off-registry gift.

The right theme can also help if picking a conflict-free shower date was nearly impossible. A combined birthday and baby shower or Christmas-themed shower could help you overcome scheduling issues.

Ask For Help When You Need It

Regardless of who’s hosting, you should ask for help from your support network as you plan. Pregnancy brain, balancing work with doctor’s appointments and sheer physical exhaustion are likely to influence how “up to it” you feel. There’s no need to put yourself under extra strain just to plan a party.

Enlist the assistance of a super-organized friend who loves planning things, a crafty friend who likes making party decor, a friend with a warehouse club membership to pick up snacks, and so on. Your host should also help coordinate and plan all these details. If you’re asking someone else to take on this role, make sure it’s someone with the time and

With the right help on your side and smart scheduling, planning your shower will be a breeze. Don’t forget to include some Bellefit nursing pajamas or a support girdle on your must-have gift list!