Berry Themed Baby Shower

My mom threw me the cutest shower this weekend for our sweet little Nora! The theme was Berry Sweet, and she created several craft stations that allowed each guest to leave their own personal touch. This theme was so versatile and unique, unlike most of the baby shower themes I had seen. Here’s a a brief look at what the party looked like, what we did, and what we ate!

Games/Crafts

One of my requests when my mom was planning the shower was to have a lot of activities because I didn’t want any uncomfortable lull in the party (and honestly I was hoping we’d run out of time for me to open all the gifts in front of everyone!). She definitely delivered! There were 5 stations and 6 activities, plus food and drinks. There wasn’t a dull moment the entire afternoon!

Block Making

Another one of my favorite things about the party was that everything was 100% useful to me! The Block-Making station contained blank wooden blocks my mom had stenciled a letter of the alphabet to and paint pens for our guests to get creative! We really had some beautiful artwork! And some people signed their names also, leaving their own personal touch. I may have Ryan epoxy each one so that the girls can play with them and not let the paint smudge.

What you need:

• Paint Pens
• 1.5 inch unfinished wooden blocks(at least 27 count)
• Instruction card (Canva design here – *Be sure to hit MAKE A COPY before editing anything!)

Sachet Making/Favors

The cutest little favors I’ve ever seen, this station allowed guests to decorate and fill a lavender sachet for the baby and me AND to also make a second to take home! I loved looking at the designs everyone left on the bags.

What you need:

• Dried lavender buds(1 pound)
• Dry rice
• Cotton drawstring bags(3X4inch)
• Lavender essential oil (read more about how to safely use essential oils here)
• Paint Pens(optional)
• Bowls and spoons
• Instruction card (Canva design here – *Be sure to hit MAKE A COPY before editing anything!)

Bow Making

One of the ideas I found on Pinterest was for a bow-making station, but my mom put her own spin on it to make it even more personalized. She provided a sizing chart, ruler, and pens to label the sizes of each headband according to age. Everyone did such an amazing job crafting some adorable bows for both Nora and Genny!

What you need:

• Bow making kit
• Hot glue
• Labels and pens
• Something to hang finished bows on to dry (we used a jewelry tree)
• Instructional card (Canva design here – *Be sure to hit MAKE A COPY before editing anything!)

Guest “Book” and Notes

In leieu of an actual book for guests to sign, my mom framed an ultrasound picture of the baby and provided pens for people to leave their names. In addition, she set out small cards for people to leave notes of encouragement and envelopes for them to leave their own address for Thank You cards. Again, everything was so useful and special! And the guests always had something to do.

What you need:

• Thank You cards
• Pens
• Small pieces of paper or note cards
• Box to hold them
• Framed photo of baby ultrasound

Diaper Raffle

On the e-vite, my mom called the party a Diaper Shower and asked for guests to bring diapers in order to be entered into a raffle. She created adorable gift baskets for the winner of this and for the How Well Do You Know Mama? game. Each guest who brought diapers could leave them in the designated cubbies and take a ticket to sign and drop in the box. This is a great idea for making sure that Mama gets lots of diapers! I won’t be buying any until Nora is probably a year old! *Also, diapers are usually very easy to exchange for different sizes – just take the packages to a store that carries the same brand and ask customer service

What you need:

• Tickets
• Pens
• Box for tickets
• Instructional card (Canva design here – *Be sure to hit MAKE A COPY before editing anything!)

How Well Do You Know Mama?

https://www.canva.com/design/DADhvRCMZvc/share/preview?token=mlN1KpkxgFQRlX9eZYFh_A&role=EDITOR&utm_content=DADhvRCMZvc&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=sharebutton

The last game was a written trivia about me. Whoever answered the most questions like I did won a lovely gift basket. This was funny because I filled out my card at the same time, and some of them were actually difficult for me to answer! It was a fun way to tie together the party, and everyone felt like they got to know me a little better.

What you need:

• How Well Do You Know Mama? papers for everyone (Canva design here – *Be sure to hit MAKE A COPY before editing anything!)
• Something to write with

Decor

The decor my mom used was so cute and thematic! She got polkadotted red balloons and cut green construction paper for the top to look like strawberries. She got blue balloons and solid red balloons for raspberries, and made a banner that said Berry Sweet Nora Lorene.

Food

Most of you know, my dad is a professional chef. He co-owns The Southern Stand rolling restaurant and catering business, and my family has been raised with a higher standard for food because of him. As a result, most of our guests were familiar with, albeit impressed, my dad’s professional level of food presentation. He did not disapoint. In fact, he went above and beyond, even baking the gluten free white cake from scratch. It was heavenly! My parents made a great team for putting this party together for me – both are visionaries, and both definitely did more than I could have even imagined to make the shower a success.

Unfortunately I didn’t get photographs of every food item, but here was the basic layout.

What you need:

• Chocolate covered strawberries (we had both white and dark)
• Berries and waffles on a stick (gluten free waffles)
• White cake with white icing and berries on top
• Parfait bar (assortment of berries, small containers, and whipped cream)
• Charcuteries plate (assortment of deli meats, cheeses, and crackers)
• Berry salad (greens, cranberries, assorted berries, nuts, feta cheese, balsamic dressing)

Berry Sweet Nora Lorene

In all, the shower was incredible. I had such a great time, and everyone else did as well. If you’re thinking of hosting a berry-themed party in the near future, feel free to use any and all of these ideas! But I must disclaim that I didn’t think up any of these ideas on my own – they all either came from my parents or were inspired by Pinterest!

Love, Emily XOXO