The She’s Going to Pop baby shower decor and food helped set the party mood, but the true fun lies in the games and the memories created during the shower.
Shower Games
We did three simple, but fun party games. The round ottoman in the center of the living room was the perfect landing spot for a game tray. The tray included everything we would need to play the games. Of course, we made sure everything coordinated with the party colors.
The first game challenged guests to guess the diameter of the mom-to-be’s belly. Each guest was given a baggy with 3 yards of yarn. We used the same ombre yarn from the invitations. We passed around the scissors and everyone had to cut a length of yarn. The objective of the game was to cut a length of yarn equal to the mom-to-be’s waistline. Whoever was closest won.
This game is always fun to watch. Some guests hold the yarn up and try to eyeball it. Others wrap it around their own waist as if they were pregnant. The only rule is they can’t actually wrap it around the pregnant belly before they cut. Once everyone cuts their yarn, one by one they wrap it around the mom-to-be’s waist to see who guessed the closest. The winner guessed within 6 inches. The worst had enough yarn leftover to tie a bow.
The second game was the diaper cake memory game. My sister made the most adorable three-tiered diaper cake. It was stuffed full of sweet little gifts for baby. We had it out at the beginning of the shower and took it away before the game started. To help everyone out a bit, we brought it out and twirled it around once right before the game started. Everyone was given a minute to write down everything they saw on the diaper cake. The guest with the highest number of items won.
We put the diaper cake on my white cake stand and wove a color-croodinating ribbon through the slots. The cutest part of the cake was the topper. We bought a cute set of socks and mittens. The socks had little plastic pieces inside to shape them into little baby feet. We set the pair on the top tier of the cake.
The last game was the he said/she said pop quiz. Before the shower I sent a pop quiz to my brother and my SIL. They both answered the same questions separately. During the game, I read a question and one of their answers. The guests had to guess who said it, him or her. To make it a little more fun, we made everyone use props to answer. If they though she said it, they had to hold the tiara up to their head. If they though he said it, they had to hold the pacifier up to their mouth. If they thought the parents both said the same thing, they had to hold up both tiara and pacifier.
Here is a snippet of the pop quiz and their answers:
What was the worst baby name you came across?
He said: Velveeta or Unique
She Said: Olga
Which would you rather do change a dirty diaper or use the booger sucker thing?
He Said: booger sucker…it’s funner to say
She Said: Dirty Diaper
What is one thing your mother taught you that you think will be helpful to you as a parent?
He Said: listen for silence – that’s when you know they’re up to something
She Said: Later in her life when it comes to food…my mom always had a rule you have to try everything once. After you tried it and didn’t like it you can eat something else. (usually meant you were on your own)
Each shower game winner got to choose a mystery door prize. These cute lunch-bag-sized gift bags were only 49 cents each at Target. We had one winner for the yarn game, one winner for the diaper cake memory game, and two winners for he said/she said. The prizes were either a large jar candle or a set of hand sanitizer, lotion, and body wash.
Party Favors & Memoirs
When the guests arrived, we asked them to write a note to baby and self-address an envelope. The notes to baby were placed in a jar and given to my SIL at the end of the party. The self-addressed envelopes were also given to her along with a set of thank you cards. Having all the envelopes addressed will make it easier for her to send thank you cards.
The Notes to Baby sign, as well as Fill a Bag and Please Take One signs, were made with leftover pieces of the tablecloth. The white frame is the Tolsby from Ikea for 99 cents. It is the cutest table top frame for party signage. You can even have signage or pictures on both sides. I adhered a label to a piece of tablecloth cut to size. I put the sign inbetween the plexi-glass and inserted it into the top of the frame.
We also gave my SIL a 12 x 12 pink plastic envelope filled with party elements for scrapbooking. We gave her a sheet of each scrapbook paper we used, a piece of tablecloth, a napkin, a cupcake liner, ribbon from the diaper cake and stand, a popsicle stick wrapped with all the washi tapes, a tiara, a pacifier, and a yarn baggy. At the end of the party we added all the notes to baby and the signs used throughout the party. Too bad I forgot to take a picture of the party memories gift :(
The party favors turned out adorable and you would not believe how inexpensive they were to make. To go with the pop theme we wanted to use bubble bath for party favors. We bought a large 64 oz. bottle of milk and honey bubble bath at Walmart for $2.50. We found these squat, wide-mouth 8 oz jars at Walmart too. They were a set of 4 for $3.99. With one jug of bubble bath and two packs of jars, we made 8 favors for about a $1.31 each.
We filled the jars to the brim with bubble bath. To dress up the jars we used a skinny piece of washi tape to wrap around the lid. I made and printed the labels on full sheet label paper. The labels said “Thanks for popping by to shower Andrea” and in small print it said, “milk and honey bubble bath”.
I found the ombre tray at Target for $9.99. After settling on the ombre napkins, I could not resist this tray. The colors were perfect!
Did you miss the food and decor post? Click here to see the rest of the pink and orange pop party goodness.
I love the he said/she said game idea. I’ve seen it done at bridal showers before but never a baby shower before. Might have to borrow the scrap book idea:) The details for the party are all so perfect!
You guys really did a fantastic job! I’m sure the mom to be felt so blessed and loved by all the attention to details for her party!
Oh my gosh. You are sooo talented. I love all the attention to detail. What a lucky S-I-L to have you as a party planner.
all i can say is fabulous!!!
you do great parties!
now for adult party ideas! i have hubby’s 40th b-day this year!!! ;)
Jessie,
If you are still looking for your husband’s party, I like these Mad Men themed parties:
http://pizzazzerie.com/parties/amcs-mad-men-inspired-birthday-party/
http://thriftandshout.blogspot.com/2011/08/thanks-for-all-of-birthday-wishes-i-had.html?m=1
There are many more great examples of this theme too. Just Google Mad Men party.
Okay…I’ll get pregnant (again), and you can throw me that same shower! I love all the details! :)
Oh my goodness! You are so creative! Thank you for sharing all the details.
I love your idea of the pop quiz, along with everything else of course! Do you have a list of all of the questions that you used somewhere for the quiz? I’d love to use this for my sister next month.
Hi Jenette. Sorry for the delay responding. I dug up the whole list of questions we used for the pop quiz. Open-ended questions were definitely the best and everyone loved this game. It was tricky guessing who said what and some of the answers were super humorous!
-How much do you think she will weigh?
-What color eyes do you think she will have?
-Will she come early or late?
-What do you think her favorite food will be?
-What do you think will be your biggest lifestyle change after baby arrives?
-How do you plan to soothe baby when she cries?
-Which would you rather do change a dirty diaper or use the booger sucker thing?
-What is one thing your mother taught you that you think will be helpful to you as a parent?
-Are you ready for baby?
How will you cope with sleepless nights that come with a newborn?
What is your biggest wish for her?
What was the worst baby name you came across?
What was the craziest advice anyone gave you during the pregnancy?
What will be your first thought when “it’s time”?
Oh that’s just wonderful! Thank you so much for doing that! I was telling my sister & BIL yesterday about the game and they are excited about it! Thanks bunches!
Hi I am looking for a cake stand like yours, any idea where you bought it?
Casey, It is from HomeGoods. They always have them. I grabbed one with an ugly ribbon in it and then changed the ribbon for something more my taste.
Do you have a template for the tiara and pacifier?