Baby Shower Etiquette

By Charmaine L. Smoot


Being aware of etiquette helps the hostess of a baby shower ensure her event is a success for the expectant mother and guests. While many of the formal practices observed in the past have been relaxed, many of the traditional rules of etiquette have survived for a very good reason: they take the guesswork out of planning the shower and help set everyone's expectations!

Baby Shower Invitations

When should baby shower invitations be sent out? They should reach guests two to three weeks in advance to allow everyone ample time to 1) arrange their busy schedules, 2) hire baby sitters for their own kids, and 3) shop for presents.

Hosting - The Best Baby Shower Gift You Can Give

It's been tradition that the honor of hosting the baby shower belonged only to friends of the pregnant mom. If a family member hosted the event, it gave the appearance of an event designed to solicit gifts for the expectant woman. Now, however, that rule has been bent to the point of breaking. Anyone can throw a baby shower to honor the mom-to-be... including the woman herself!

Because hosting a baby shower can be quite expensive in terms of both time and money, someone who gladly volunteers for the honor is best for the job. Never put someone on the spot and ask him/her to host a shower. Volunteer hosts who are happy to perform this service for their friend or family member are the best hosts to have.

Time

Usually, the baby shower is held before the baby's arrival. Towards the end of the pregnancy, some feelings of fear may set in due to many factors - physical discomfort, impatience, worry about the delivery - so the baby shower can be a welcome diversion.

Seeing old friends and relatives at the shower helps emphasize the importance of the pregnancy, and while traditionally a shower was only held for the first baby, it is now considered acceptable to have baby showers for subsequent children, including adoptions.

Guest List

The guest list should be made in consultation with the expectant mother since there may be many people she would like to include whom the host doesn't know. Although traditionally, baby showers were only for women, the mother may nowadays choose to have both men and women at her celebration. In fact, more and more baby showers are being held for both the mother and father.

Behavior

Since the entire reason for the event is to celebrate the upcoming birth, every guest is expected to congratulate the expectant parents. And as with all other parties, the guests should also give plenty of thanks to the host for organizing and holding the shower.

About the Author:
Need the perfect baby shower gift for the upcoming event? Charmaine L. Smoot has hand-picked some fabulous baby shower gifts for mom as well as baby shower gifts for dad.

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