Hosting a baby shower doesn't have to be strenuous or difficult. It can actually be rather fun and exciting if you let it be.
The first thing you need to decide on is just how big you want this event to be. If it is to be just something small with not an extreme amount of guests, you can probably host the event right in your own home without any hassles. However, if you want something quite a bit larger with many guests, you might want to consider renting a hall or using someone's house that has a large enough room and space capacity, like a den or basement game room.
The next plan of action is how much are you will to spend (time/money) on this event. There are so many things you can do to plan an eventful and memorable baby shower.
Your To-Do List should consist of: 1. Location 2. Invitations 3. Events (Fun/Games) 4. Food 5. Decorations And probably all in that order to make it easier on purchasing items that will be needed.
You need to have the location first in order to be able to place it on the invitations. Once the invitations are passed or mailed out, people will be contacting you as to whether they can make it or not, and some will also be willing to help out with the plans. Then comes the decision on what kind of games and entertainment there will be. If food is going to be involved, this is a good time to write down what items are needed so it can be added to the refreshments list. Once all of these are covered, you can now work on decorations and prizes.
The decorations can be simply color orientated or themed, from several themes to choose from.
The prizes only need to be small, simple, and inexpensive. For instance, small purse sewing kits, pen & pencil set, mini packs of flavored coffee's, even scratch off lottery tickets.
Games_ There are so many different games that can be played to entertain your guests while the mommy-to-be is opening gifts. I have listed a few of my favorites below, that seemed to play well with little or no complications.
#1. The Baby Food Taste Test_ is always a big hit. Purchase about 8 jars of baby food, ranging from a wide assortment such as: custard, bananas, squash, spinach, sweet potatoes, macaroni & cheese, and cereal. Label the jars labels with a number, then remove the labels and keep them aside for later. Line up the jars on a long table from jar 1 to the last. Have your guests line up and hand each one a plastic spoon, a piece of paper, and a pencil. Tell them to number their paper from 1 to how ever many jars you have lined up. Now each guest walks to the jars, one at a time, tastes the contents, then writes down what it was. The guest with the most amount of right answers wins a prize. The mommy-to-be may also join in on this event. It's a good time for her to get used to tasting what she is about to feed her child.
#2. Another great game is the Mystery Bag Game. Purchase about 5 to 8 baby items or mommy items, that are small enough to fit into a paper lunch bag, but try to make it a little tough to recognize by touch alone. For instance, a teething ring, baby nail clippers, breast pads, etc. Place each item into their own bag, and label the bag with a number. When all bags have something into them, staple the bags shut. Again, hand each guest a piece of paper and a pencil, and instruct them to number their papers from 1 to how many bags there are. Pass the bags around the room, so that each guest can feel the bag. When they think they have the answer, they write it down on their paper. After all the bags have been examined and everyone has their answers written down, instruct them to write their name on the top of the paper and hand them to you. Now give the bags to the mommy to open and reveal the contents of the bag. The guest with the most correct answers wins a prize and the mommy-to-be gets to keep the contents from the bags.