Finding out your pregnant is the best news of all. Well, second to hearing the grand proposal of a lifetime. After a successful wedding ceremony, hearing that your love has borne fruit is the icing on the cake. For first time expecting mothers, it is a difficult and herculean task to search and look for all the right stuff and equipment the baby will need.

Moms-to-be need to list down all the things the baby would need at the soonest possible time so that little by little, each item can already be purchased and readied for the baby’s arrival. But there is another easy way to almost have it all, without getting too much headache over it. The solution is to hold a baby shower party! The only headache mom-to-be would have is the menu she would have to prepare on that day and that is easier for her.

Now the burden of searching and looking for baby stuff is passed on to the invitees. But another concern is raised. How will the baby shower go about? The best answer there is, is to have a theme that would guide the flow of the baby shower.

There are several ways of choosing and deciding on a theme. Do you want it to be based on color? In case you already know the gender of the baby, pink or blue is used to universally represent a baby girl or a baby boy. Or baby items such as a pacifier or a baby bottle? How about character-themed baby shower such as the Sesame Street, Power Puff Girls, Dexter’s Laboratory or the Looney Tunes?

It could also be a time-of-the-day baby shower whereby each invitee is tasked to bring something the baby would need or use during that time of the day.

If you’re planning a baby shower, remember to arrange comfortable chairs in a circle so every mom can sit with other moms to offer advice on various pregnancy related issues like what to eat and which prenatal vitamins are the best.

There are events in every person’s life that they want to commemorate with a party, whether it’s the birth of a child, or the PREPARATION to the birth of a child. Now, there are so many reasons to throw a baby shower…

1. You want to ask your friends help to complete your baby accessories
2. You want to share your excitement with your closest friends
3. You want to ask for child rearing advice from your friends and family
4. You want someone to talk to you about Lamaze, ultrasound results, over the counter prenatal vitamins and some superstitions about birthing.

You can start the party with some games, like those that help you come up with a name for your child. You may want to build a time capsule that you can open during your child’s eighteenth birthday. Or you can simply sit around, talk about all the hype that’s happening over the blessing that’s coming in a few months.

Some Appetizer Suggestions for your Baby Shower

Meat and Cheese Tray – One of the easiest appetizers to set up is a meat and cheese tray. Place the meat in one row and the cheese in another. You can line the outer edges of the tray with toast, crackers or pita bread for those who want to create sandwiches.

Fruit and Vegetable Tray – You can also cut up some fruits and raw vegetables for your guests to enjoy. Arrange the fruits around a saucer of whipped cream, mayonnaise or a sweet fruit dip (like chocolate) for an instant dessert tray.

Plain Chips and Dips – Serve Chips with several dips, or several types of chips with one dip! My favorites are fresh salsa and guacamole.

You know how they say it’s absolutely tacky to request for gifts from friends? “They” were wrong. For parties that are extremely personal and intimate, you can!

For instance, a baby shower party where you invite only those who you want to share the joy and anticipation of waiting for your baby to arrive. It’s not unusual for you to ask your friends to go to a baby registry, or if you don’t have the time to set one up, to designate the gifts that you want to receive from your friends.

Baby gifts are the best when the gift-giver poured love and attention to share that very special present. But if that gift is exactly like all the other gifts the would-be parents will receive in design and function, the thought becomes wasted (although it still COUNTS for sure!).

So, if you’re a guest, the best thing to do is to coordinate with the would-be parents and ask if there’s a baby registry. If there’s none, ask the parents what they want as gifts (if you’re really close, tell them your budget too!).

If you’re the parent, it’s best to plan ahead and inform your friends (when they call for RSVP after they receive the invites) which gifts you would love to receive.

It is not that difficult to look and search for baby gifts as some would think. It is just a matter of creativity, careful consideration and genuine affection for the new addition to the family. Here are some ideas…

Baby Accessories (for the first few months to one year)

Think about what the baby might need or use in the future. You can go for a Bob revolution stroller, a snuggly blanket if the baby is due on the winter months, a baby hammock for the summer, and a monogrammed baby linen for the cot.

How about a bit of everything?

Baby gift baskets come in all shapes and sizes and they speak of your thoughtfulness for putting it all together. Be unique by personalizing the baby basket. Add one major gift (a stuffed toy or a a baby bottle holder), and a few smaller items that go with the main gift (baby feeding nipples, bottle brush, diapers, cotton buds, clothes, etc).

Besides speeches, great food and a great venue, baby shower games can make moms-to-be, godparents, grandparents, and other guests feel hyped for the arrival of the baby. Since a baby shower is a laid back party where everyone can slack off and play childish games again, it’s absolutely necessary to make your guests play some of the cutest and most entertaining baby shower games around.

Here are some of the popular ones…

1. Sing a Lullabye

Guests take turns singing a lullabye or a nursery rhyme. The thing is, one song cannot be repeated (so someone must be taking note of the songs that have already been sung). Guests are allowed 5 to 10 seconds to think of a song, after which they get booted out of the game. The last one left singing wins!

2. Don’t Say It!

At the start of the party, the host can announce a phrase or a word that cannot be mentioned until the end of the party is announced. This can be any word, from “diapers” to “breast feeding”, to baby brands or accessories.

Those who do can be “punished”.

Either they do a little dance number at the end of the party or they get charged with taking care of a chore for the mommy. They may also be asked to donate something, like more diapers (i mean “nappies”) or pregnancy supplements (if you’re in the market for this, by the way, check out some prenatal vitamins here)

3. How Big is Mommy?

For this game, you need a few rolls of tissue paper. Guests can split up into teams and cut up the rolls of tissue paper according to their guess as to how big mommy’s tummy is. Then, they can take turns wrapping the cut tissue paper around mommy’s tummy. The group that comes up with the closest estimate wins!

These games are a great way to let the guests mingle. After all, they probably will be seeing each other frequently from here on out, because there are a lot more “baby parties” to attend in the future (first birthday of the baby, Halloween, etc.)