We, being ever the party loving crowd, had planned our good friend a train themed baby shower for the arrival of her first boy. We bought the paper goods and decorations. Someone else was working on the party favors. I’d ordered the cake. Everything was set for the shower to take place about 7 weeks before she was due to give birth.
However, our friend’s baby had other plans. He arrived 10 full weeks before she was due. Obviously, the shower was the absolute least of our concern. Thankfully, despite being 10 weeks early, he was fine. He survived and was brought home, after three months in the NICU.
As you can imagine, your baby’s first shower, can provide you with a lot of needed things for your new baby. But what do you do when that baby comes far earlier than expected? We really wanted to bless our friend and let her know how happy we were for her. So we threw the baby a “Welcome Home Party.” Here’s what we did:
Take Care of Immediate Needs
When the baby was born early, we sent out new cards that let everyone know that the shower was cancelled. We also, after talking with the new mom, made several suggestions of ways people could help:
*freezer dinners that can be heated whenever the new mom gets home from the hospital
*people to drive the new mom back and forth from the hospital
*people to bring/pack snacks and water bottles for the new mom
Plan a New Date
Our new mom was comfortable with having the shower a few months after she had brought the baby home. If the baby is in the hospital the new mom may prefer to take an afternoon off and come to a shower while her baby is there. Regardless, it’s important to keep in mind what your new mother can do and what types of special needs the baby has. This is one instance when a surprise shower is simply unacceptable.
Plan the Party–Special Considerations
We threw our party inviting couples rather than making it just a traditional ladies’ event. The reason is because a new baby can be overwhelming and having to be opening presents, nursing a newborn and socializing can just about tucker out a new mom and her baby.
Another thing to consider is that preemies really are more sensitive to germs. As part of our shower décor, we bought several containers of hand sanitizing gel and placed them at various areas. This helped give the guests the idea that they were to wash their hands before touching the baby, and it also helped make it easier for the mom to insist on it.
Giving Gifts
Traditionally, at a shower, gifts are opened all at once. However, our mom felt it would be overwhelming to open that many gifts at once.
Instead, guests sought opportunity either as they were arriving or throughout the afternoon, to personally present the new baby and his parents with their gift. This allowed the new mom the opportunity to open and thank the giver individually.
Thank You Notes
We knew our mom was going to be too busy to write thank you notes, and yet it is polite to at least give a thank you note when you receive a gift so we came up with this clever little idea borrowed from a wedding reception.
We placed disposable cameras and encouraged guests to take pictures! We then bought pre-printed cards with a nice thank you message on them, and put pictures of the event inside. The pictures put a personal touch to the card, and everyone certainly understood that she wasn’t able to write lots of thank you notes.
So if you have a friend whose had a preemie, don’t give up on the shower idea. With a little re-working, you can still throw a nice event appropriate for mother and baby.
Related Articles:
Event Planning: The Baby Shower
Registering for your Baby Shower