One way or another, mothers-to-be and new mothers have enjoyed being ‘showered’ with gifts and praise since the time of the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. In ancient Egypt the rituals, involving visits to temples and shrines, were essentially female-centred and happened after the birth as they did in ancient Greece.
These days, the showering takes place before the birth, in informal parties of friends and relatives of the expectant Mum. Mostly the traditional women only showers are maintained. Woman to woman, the mystery and excitement of birth is special and guests delight in bringing gifts intended for the baby to come. It’s a great opportunity to chat intimately about children and childbirth as well as to play amusing games and share delicious snacks and champagne.
Recently I went to my first baby shower in years. For the baby gift I choose one of our sheep baby blankets.
The baby shower was such fun. One opportunity I really liked was a table set up with all sorts of art supplies, stencils, fabric paint, little canvases and a box of tiny singlets, “onesies”, and booties. Everyone could create an artwork for the baby.
Quizzes are also a lot of fun: anagrams of baby and motherhood-related words, guessing the girth of the Mum-to-be, the date and time of the coming birth and of course “baby statistics’ such as the weight, length and hair colour of the new-born.
Find a wide-mouthed baby’s bottle, fill it with nappy pins or anything you fancy, and ask guests to guess the number of things in the bottle.
Attach tiny rattles to ribbons, one for each guest, then challenge everyone to refrain from using the word baby. Those who say “baby” lose their ribbon and the person who collects the most ribbons wins.
Shower givers can be just as creative with party food too. Finger food is easiest though pretty baby-themed paper plates work well, allowing wider range of yummy food. Think bite-sized circlets of potato and bacon fritters, tiny tuna salads on lettuce leaves, small tacos with ‘choose your fillings’, sliders, and mushrooms on toasted French bread slices.
Some delicious little deserts of fruit, jellies and yoghurts and delicious home-made cakes will be popular, followed by tea or coffee.
If you want to add a little sparkle to your shower, pink champagne is perfect for a baby girl shower, or how about a fun MOM-osa bar and the mum to be can enjoy one without the bubbly!
