Baby Shower Ideas: The Ultimate Guide to Celebrating Mom and Baby

Expecting a baby is a special time in a woman’s life. As the big day (birth) approaches, there’s so much excitement, especially for new moms. Baby showers are a fun way to celebrate the upcoming arrival of a baby.

Whether you’re throwing a baby shower for a close friend or relative or just looking for a different unique way to honor the expecting mother, this guide has all the information you need to get inspired.

We’ll explore different baby shower themes, game ideas, and fun food suggestions and provide tips for hosting a successful baby shower that the expecting mom and her guests will remember for years.

Baby Shower Theme Ideas

There are so many baby shower themes to choose from. You can get as creative or as simple as you’d like. For inspiration, here is a list of ideas to get started. If you know the gender of the baby, you can adapt any of these for a boy baby or girl baby shower.

• Animal-themed: Safari, jungle, woodland creatures, or farm
• Classic colors: Keeping it simple with a pink, blue, purple, yellow, or white color palette
• Traditional ideas: Nautical, floral, prince or princess,
• Minimalist: White, cream, gray, or black with a few simple accents
• Eco-friendly: Choose recycled items and Earthy tones
• Up in the clouds: Whimsical and dreamy with decor options like rain, rainbows, clouds, etc.
• Sports-themed: Perfect for an active family and can be general or focused on a favorite sport or sports team
• Modern: Chic and clean with geometric shapes, stylish color combos, and mid-century elements
• Storybook: Fairytales, nursery rhymes, or a favorite book come to life with decorations and details
• Nature-inspired: Garden party, tea party, backyard BBQ, or an outdoor picnic
• Play on words: Find a favorite saying for your theme, such as ‘Oh, Baby,’ ‘Love You to the Moon and Back,’ ‘About to Pop,’ ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star,’ etc.
• Superheroes: Choose a favorite comic book or movie character for inspiration
• Seasonal: Match the current season, such as spring flowers or fall pumpkins
• Fun twin themes: Choose any theme you like from above, or capitalize on the twin theme with ‘Double the Fun,’ ‘Two Peas in a Pod,’ etc.

Other Fun Baby Shower Ideas

Try these other fun and adorable baby shower ideas.

• Teddy bear: Include favorite stuffed toys and collect new ones for the baby
• Western: Cowboy, cowgirl, farmer, etc.
• Beach: Tropical, ocean-inspired decor and activities
• Things that go: Plane, train, and automobile theme
• Travel: Worldwide or a specific destination (i.e., Paris, Rome, etc.)
• Retro: General vintage and antique elements
• Boho: Hippie or bohemian vibes for the free-spirited mom
• Board games: Choose a favorite game board for inspiration, such as Candy Land
• Fiesta: Choose bright colors and go all out with delicious Mexican food

Unique Baby Shower Ideas

Consider these options if you want to do something other than a traditional baby shower.

• A couples shower: Invite everyone to the party for a coed baby shower rather than just the ladies
• Potluck style get-together: Ask each guest to bring a dish of their choice to share
• Spa day or self-care day for mom: Celebrate mom by pampering her
• Crafting day: Use a baby shower for tackling a fun project together, such as making a blanket, painting a canvas, making nursery decor, or even building furniture
• Group outing: Get everyone together for fun activities like golf, bowling, laser tag, etc.
• Classic BBQ: You can grill up some great food to celebrate and hang out in the backyard or a park
• Turn the shower into a gender reveal party: If the parents want to celebrate the baby’s gender, you can throw a separate party or combine it with a gender reveal party

Baby Shower Decorations

Once you’ve chosen a theme for the celebration, it’s time to start brainstorming the decorations. Creating a whole look typically only takes a few well-placed accent pieces. Or you can go all-out and embellish a space with all the bells and whistles to transform the party space into something extra special.

You can use banners, streamers, balloons, tablecloths, centerpieces, flowers, and garlands that match the chosen theme. Tailor your choices to a baby boy, girl, or gender-neutral. You can purchase theme-specific pieces at a party store, look online, or find printables and craft projects that fit your decor desires.

Baby Shower Ideas: Games

Games are an integral part of a baby shower party and can be a great way to break the ice while allowing guests to get to know each other. Here are a few different types of baby shower games that you can consider for the baby shower.

• Classic games: Baby Bingo, Price is Right, Baby Word Scramble, Guess the Name, etc.
• Pop culture options: Name That Baby Song, Name That Character, Name That Baby Movie, etc.
• Other fun games: How Well Do You Know the Mommy to Be, Guess Who (Mommy or Daddy?), Baby Animals, True or False, etc.

In addition, if you want to add more fun or ditch the games, you have other options for making the baby shower interactive. These include:

• Traditional games: Offering board games or card games
• Declaring party rules: At the beginning, designate a particular word that no one is allowed to say (like “baby”) and have guests keep track of who breaks the rules with safety pins or clothes pins
• Crafts and more: Create panels for a quilt, have a onesie decoration station, guess the baby’s due date or name, write inspirational quotes on diapers, build babies out of something (clay, play dough, diapers, food, etc.), knit or crochet a blanket together, etc.

Baby Shower Ideas: Food

No baby shower is complete without yummy food. This can range from a full meal to tasty snacks, depending on the time of day and what you want to offer. Here are a few ideas to consider for feeding your guests.

• Baby brunch: Offer classic breakfast options like muffins, quiche, and fruit
• Snacks: Serve light bites like a charcuterie board, veggie tray, chips, dip, popcorn, pretzels, and salad (pasta, veggie, etc).
• Classic crowd pleasers: You can’t go wrong with crowd favorites like pizza, burgers, kabobs, or sandwiches
• Finger foods: Think mini sandwiches, sliders, tacos, or quesadillas
• Mini desserts: Consider bite-sized items like cupcakes, cookies, brownies, mini pies, cake pops, or mini donuts
• Sweets: Set up a dessert bar with cookies, candy, cake, and other treats
• Drinks: Have a variety of beverages available, including non-alcoholic options like water, tea, juice, soda, or virgin cocktails. You can decide if you’d like to include alcoholic drinks for other guests to toast the mom, such as wine, champagne, or beer.
• Other options include having a potluck or catering a full meal if the budget allows

Baby Shower Ideas: Party Favors

Part of the fun of hosting is having small baby shower favors to give out at the end. Similar to the rest of your party setup, these can be as simple or elaborate as you’d like.

• Classic favors: Chocolate-covered pretzels, popcorn, cookies, candy bags, mini bottles of alcohol or juice, tea bags, or bath and body products that fit the theme of the shower
• DIY: Homemade soaps, seed packets, succulents, jars of honey or jam, homemade granola, or candles
• Funny: Humorous items like pacifier necklaces, baby food jars filled with candy, or mini bottles of “mommy juice”

No matter what favors you decide to give out, ensure they’re easy to take home. Avoid novelty items that are too personalized and won’t be very useful for the guest, leading to clutter and extra junk in the landfill. A fun favor is a great way to thank guests for coming and give them a fun souvenir.

Other Considerations for Hosting a Baby Shower

When hosting a baby shower, there are a few other things that you should consider. These include:

• Invitations: Make sure to send out invitations in advance and include the date, time, location, RSVP info, registry info if needed, and any other vital information. You can design invitations matching the theme and send them virtually via email (if you have everyone’s email addresses), text, or snail mail.
• Budget: Estimate the cost of food, decorations, and other items to know how much money is needed to host the shower. If you’re on a strict budget, there are easy ways to cut costs with DIY options and keeping the get-together simple yet thoughtful.
• Consider hosting a virtual shower: If the mom-to-be has friends and relatives spread out across the country (or world), consider inviting them via video. With the help of Zoom, Skype, or Google Hangouts, you can have everyone join in on the fun and celebration from their homes.
• Guest comfort: When setting up the space for a party, remember to account for the comfort of your guests. Consider ample seating, room temperature, and food choices (for allergies or preferences).
• Capture the memories: It’s easy to be preoccupied on the day of the shower. Remember to include something to help capture the moments. Consider having a guest book, cards to fill out with advice for mom, a digital camera for people to take photos, a photo challenge to get everyone involved and capture photos on their phone to share, etc.

Throwing a Baby Shower That Everyone Will Love

Planning a baby shower is all about helping the mom feel supported and loved as she prepares for a new chapter in her life. Each mom is different, so get a feel for what she’d like most and tailor the details to her preferences. Have fun with it, and make it a day to remember!

This article originally appeared on Hello Sensible.