Planning Baby Shower: Hosting A Successful Party

Hosting a baby shower can be a lot of fun, and with a little bit of planning, you can be sure you’ll have a successful party. To start, you'll need to come up with an overall plan that will help the day run smoothly.

First, you’ll need a theme for your shower so that all of the elements of the party will appear cohesive and harmonious. For example, you wouldn't send casual and humorous invitations only to have guests arrive at a very formal event. Choosing a theme is a great way to help you tie everything together, as it will make decorating and food decisions easier. Even if your theme is something as simple as pastel colors, it will still help everything come together beautifully.

You should also plan some snacks for the baby shower. Depending on the time of day, you may want to serve simple appetizers or plan for a full meal. Try to choose a menu that’s appropriate for your theme and for the season of the year. Also, find out if the guest of honor has any special dietary requirements. Many women follow special diets during pregnancy or develop new food aversions. The last thing you want is to go all out planning a shower where the guest of honor can’t eat any of the food!

WMost baby showers also feature a dessert, so you’ll need to plan for this as well. This can be a cake decorated in keeping with the theme you have chosen or another type of dessert. Cupcakes remain a popular choice, but pies or other desserts are also appropriate.

As the hostess, it’s your job to make sure everything runs smoothly. This means sending the invitations out an appropriate amount of time before the party, tracking RSVPs and helping guests if they need information regarding gift choices. You’ll also need to reserve, decorate and otherwise prepare the party location. On the big day, you’ll need to prepare a place for the guests to put their gifts and welcome them as they arrive. Plan to offer them a beverage and a snack, and make introductions between guests as needed.

Once everyone has arrived, you may want to lead them in a few games or you may just want to allow everyone to socialize. It’s nice if you can plan activities that will allow everyone to socialize as a group so that everyone gets a chance to interact with the guest of honor.

When it comes time to open the gifts, it’s up to you to make sure the guest of honor has the help she needs to keep track of who the gifts are from and to move heavier things from place to place. Once the gifts are opened and passed amongst the guests, you’ll likely want to move into serving the dessert.

Finally, as the hostess, it’s your job to bid farewell to all of your guests, assist the guest of honor in getting the gifts to her home and cleaning up after the shower. Then, you can relax and congratulate yourself on hosting a successful party!