Baby, Oh Baby!

By Laura Williams

The first of the year always makes me think about babies. Maybe I just can’t get that Christmas special with Baby New Year out of my head. Whatever the reason, during the course of the year, chances are you will attend a baby shower, throw a baby shower, or have one thrown for you. All three require careful planning and present unique opportunities to express yourself and the style of the mom-to-be. And all, if properly planned, can be a lot of fun for you, the mother-to-be, and the guests.
 
Let’s start with throwing a baby shower. What is the expectant mother like, what does she enjoy, and most importantly what does she need to help her start off right with the new child? Does she know if it’s a boy or girl and does she have other children? These are all things that need to be considered when planning the event. If this is her first child, chances are the mom-to-be will need everything, including something to pamper her once the baby arrives. A recent trend in baby showers is to include the father and make it a couples shower, instead of one just for the ladies. These can be fun, but be sure to check with the mom first, as she might have certain ideas of what she’d like. 

One of the more interesting ideas I’ve heard is a “Picture Perfect” baby shower. The idea here is to give the mom-to-be things that help her capture the individual moments of her child’s life. The invitation can be an image of the sonogram to help introduce the theme. Guests can, as a group, buy a digital camera or give a gift certificate for a photo shoot for the new baby and mom. She might choose to use this great gift for the photo that will be included with the birth announcement (which we’ll discuss later) or perhaps have the milestone first birthday portrait. Individual gifts can range from beautiful picture frames to custom, hand-dyed felt photo albums to brag books that all new moms are sure to need. The host of the shower can even include the theme in the games, which is always a great idea. Notify the guests to bring baby photos of themselves and have the expectant mother try to match them with the guests. You’ll also want to plan for someone to take pictures – whether this is a professional photographer or just a friend, it helps to have a neutral person take the pictures – someone who won’t be participating in the shower. 

Another friend of mine just had her third boy and wasn’t sure she wanted a shower at all since she was pretty well set on the essentials. So we suggested a “Pamper Party” – a shower that pampered both her and the baby. Guests were encouraged to bring diapers (Pampers), wipes, and other essentials for the baby, but also things that would pamper the mom, including scented soaps, lotions, a lavender eye mask, or a gift certificate for a post-partum massage. Instead of traditional games, we used the kit developed by Durham-based Crafty Girls, which has guests decorate onesies and burp cloths for the new baby. Each guest was able to make a unique and personalized gift for the mom and the baby. 

Some couples opt for no shower, but instead agree to a party to celebrate the baby’s birth, sometimes known as a “Sip and See.” This is a wonderful way to introduce the child to friends and family. Of course, the traditional announcement might be needed for those who are not able to attend. 

Let’s quickly cover announcements, since there are some decisions you’ll need to make if you are one of the lucky ones having a shower thrown for you. There is a wonderful variety of announcements available for every style and budget. First, make sure you have a good idea of how many people are on your list to receive the announcement. This can often determine how much you are able to spend based on your budget. 
Although announcements with ribbons and bows as adornments continue to be popular, simple graphics with layers and die cut embellishments are a growing trend. One of the primary things to consider is, do you want to have the photo of your child as an integral part of the design, or would you simply rather prefer to include a photo with the announcement? Both work well; you just need to decide what style works best to meet your tastes. Just keep in mind that whether you are on your first child or your fourth, it might be helpful to choose your announcements ahead of time, since it will be much harder to find the time once the baby arrives. And remember, this picture and/or announcement will more than likely adorn many a refrigerator for months to come, so be sure to pick something that makes a good introduction.

The last thing I’d like to cover is what I view as the final baby event you’ll have for this child … and probably the last one you’ll have complete control over in terms of theme. The first birthday party is undoubtedly more special to you than to your baby. In fact, your 12-month-old will probably view the celebration as an unnecessary interruption of playtime. So the key to creating a wonderful event is to make it memorable – for you! 
Everything – from food to decorations – should be kept as simple as possible. Your job is to videotape the event from the first mouthful of cake to the opening of presents so that maybe, one day, your precious little one can enjoy the event as well. 

While keeping things simple for this first birthday, don’t forget to limit the number of guests. Most babies this age are experiencing a double whammy of stranger and separation anxiety. 

Themes are often a great way to structure a birthday party. However, although themes can help you plan decorations, invitations, food, and any activities or games should be kept to a minimum. A one-year-old simply doesn’t have the attention span or skills needed to participate in the fun. Don’t forget that you will have your hands full entertaining guests while trying to monitor your cruising birthday babe! 

Your baby is turning one. This is the most momentous birthday ever, short of 100. But beware: parents often make the mistake of taking a great cowboy or girl theme, and turning it into roundup birthday overload. My advice is to keep the party relatively short and time it for shortly after naptime. This will help avoid overloading the baby and running into a meltdown if the baby gets too tired. 

So go ahead and get the invitations with the cowboy theme, serve that hat-shaped cake on roundup plates, and buy cute party favors that follow the theme ... and then sit back and let the party take its course. This is the one event that is more for you than for your child. If you run around organizing events, you’ll miss the party, and you surely don’t want that!

Laura Neal Williams owns and operates InkSpot Stationers located in downtown Wake Forest at 223 South White Street. She may also be reached at 554-2634.