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ABCs and
123s: A Mother-to-Be's First Shower
Do you know someone who is experiencing her first
pregnancy? Everything is new. She has those feelings of excitement, fear, and
joy. She finds the uncertainty of whether to buy Pampers or Luvs, which seems
like a major decision. The indecision of decorating the nursery is present. On
top of it all, the lingering queasiness of morning sickness is a constant
reminder of changes to come. No matter how old the mother-to-be, she will be in
need of anything and everything to help her take care of that new bundle of joy.
Help the new mom learn the ABC's and 123's of being a parent and throw her the
first and best baby shower she will ever have!
Invitations
There are so many fun and creative ways to make invitations for this
shower! Try one of our many cute ideas:
- Tie each invitation to a small baby rattle with a pink, yellow, or blue
ribbon, and hand deliver them.
- Send out invitations in the shape of a teddy bear, with an extra piece
of stationary in the envelope that starts out, "The secret to being a
great mother is..." Each guest has to write out her answer, and send
it in as her RSVP ahead of time (All answers/advice will go into an album
for the new mother-to-be).
- Write out each invitation on a toy building block. You will need to use
permanent marker. It is even cuter if you can find large blocks with
alphabet letters on them. You will probably have to hand-deliver these
invitations unless you want to use a large padded envelope.
- Write each invitation on a mini-chalkboard! I do recommend that you copy
and tape the details on the back of the board, in addition to writing them
on the board in chalk though just in case pertinent information gets
erased.
Decorations
Since this is the mother-to-be's
first baby shower, you want it to be special and something that she will
remember for years to come. You also want to make sure she learns something
so stick with the theme ABCs and 123s! Decorate the party room to look like
a kindergarten classroom (unless you can actually convince a school in your
area to let you have the party in their kindergarten classroom). Pin up the
alphabet, as well as some numbers around the entire room. If you can find
pictures of Sesame Street characters, or The Letter People, hang them up
around the room as well! Then throw confetti diaper pins, teddy bears, or
rocking horses all over each table to complete the festive decor!
Centerpieces - If you want to go the easy, no fuss route, you can
make each table either a number or a letter. Use the "block idea"
for the centerpieces to go with the block invitations. If you are feeling a
bit more creative, make each table represent a different letter. Place a
cardboard cutout of a letter (decorate with glitter, ribbon, and anything else
bright and sparkly that you can find) on each table, and put an object that
starts with the letter on the table with the cutout. For example… Place an
"A" next to an ape, "B" next to a ball, "C" next
to a cat, etc.
Another fun idea for centerpieces for a mother-to-be's first baby shower is
to use different objects that are necessary for a new mother-to-be to have.
For example, one table could be the "breast pump" table while
another could be the "pacifier table". This way, if you use objects
that a new mom will need, she can take the objects home at the end of the
party.
Seating Cards - Seating cards are super easy for the "ABCs,
123s" shower! Each card will either have a letter, and or a picture of
the centerpiece that corresponds with a letter.
If your centerpieces are different necessary objects for the mom-to-be, a
fun idea for seating cards is to have a clue as to what each object is used
for on each card. For example, if the centerpiece is a box of diapers the clue
could be "Can be found with or without cartoon characters all over
it" or "Will keep your baby's bum dry".
Activities
"Baby Business"- Buy 10 baby objects that aren't easily
identified, such as a nose syringe, a temperature strip, a breast pump, a
teething ring, and so on. Distribute paper and pencil and ask players to try
and guess what each object does. The player with the most correct answers is
the winner. Present a basket of the objects to the Mom-to-be.
"The Day I Was Born"- Tell each guest to bring to the party up to
a page long description of their own birth. If necessary, have them call
relatives to get the "gory details". Have your guests fold their
stories up and put them in a box. Hand a random birth story to each person,
and one by one have everyone read the story they were given out loud. After
each story is read, have everyone guess which story belongs to each guest.
"Old Wives' Tales"- Ask some friends for some old wives' tales,
such as "If you eat strawberries, your baby will have a strawberry
mark," or "If you carry your baby high, it's going to be a
girl." Write them down on slips of paper. Then mix in some true facts,
such as "Baby needs 4 hours of sucking time a day." Then have
players take turns reading them and answering whether they are true or false.
"What's in the Bag?"- Before the party, put about 10-15 baby
objects each in their own paper bag. As people arrive, give them a numbered
piece of paper and a writing utensil. Have them go to the table where each
item is in a numbered paper bag. They can feel the item through the bag, but
they cannot handle the bag roughly or put their hand in the bag. When everyone
has made their guesses, the host/hostess must reveal what is in each bag. The
person who guessed the most items correctly wins! (Some good items to include
are baby powder, diaper rash cream, cloth diaper, pacifier, teething ring,
baby spoon, etc.)
Party Favors
Almost everyone likes chocolate, which is a good thing since you can find
chocolate in just about any shape to fit every occasion! Send everyone at your
party home with a small baby bottle filled with M&Ms, or a solid chocolate
pair of baby shoes. Another yummy party favor is either gummy pacifiers, or
sweet tart pacifiers/baby rattles. Also be sure hand out
custom
candy bar wrappers.
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