Your best friend is having her first baby, and you have been assigned to the planning committee. The theme is based on her choice of décor for the nursery and her mom is handling the food, leaving you with the task of entertaining. Don’t let this party go down as just another baby shower. Loosen up the party goers by engaging everyone in games and watch the laughter flow.
- Famous parents. It is always good to start with an icebreaker and this game gives the guests a chance to mingle. As your guests arrive, place a sticker on their back naming one half of famous couple with children. The guests need to figure out who they are by asking each other questions and then go find their mate. Examples include: Michelle and Jim Bob (Duggar), Brad and Angelina or Jon and Kate (Plus 8).
- Find the binky. Fill a diaper bag with items you would expect to find inside (and maybe a few things you wouldn’t) like bottles, diaper pad, bottles, jar food, blankets, etc. Bury a pacifier deep inside the bag. Challenge the women to find the pacifier quickly (after all, the baby is crying loudly in public) without taking anything out of the bag. Keep track of everyone’s time and award a prize to the fastest mom. When the game is over, give the contents of the bag to the new mom.
- Don’t stick the baby. Purchase cloth diapers, diaper pins and pink or blue round balloons. Blow up the balloons and add baby faces with markers. Test the diapering skills of the party guests by asking them to put a diaper on the baby –without sticking them with a pin and popping the balloon. This is harder than it looks.
- Baby food taste test. Purchase a selection of baby food jars or make your own baby food for a little more variety. Place the baby food inside disposable diapers and cover the diaper to hide the surprise inside. Number the diapers and ask everyone to guess the baby food based on smell or taste. A prize goes to the most accurate taster.
- Don’t break your water. This is a warm weather, outdoor game. Fill several water balloons and have your guests compete in a relay race. The object is to carry your water balloon between your knees and walk quickly from point A to point B without breaking your water. The team with the most filled water balloons at the end of the race is the winner.
- Who will the baby look like? Make 8 ½ x 11 color copies of each parent’s face. Supply each guest with a blank piece of paper. Using scissors and glue, cut out the parts of the parent’s face to make a composite of what the baby will look like. Feel free to embellish with markers or crayons. Put the face on a stick and take a group picture with the parents-to-be.
- Baby Pictionary – Make a stack of cards with names of baby animals like kid, filly, and joey. Using a dry erase board or large sheets of paper on an easel, each person has to identify the parent animal and draw it for the others to guess. Steer away from common names like pup or calf which are used for several different animals.
Pam Molnar is a freelance writer and mother of three. She believes the fastest way to take a party from Average to Awesome is to pull out the games.
BONUS! Four More Baby Shower Activities:
Make a time capsule for the baby to be opened on her 18th birthday. Ask each guest to write a letter to the future baby ahead of time explaining their relationship to her, telling the baby something about her parents and giving advice or good wishes for her future.
Give the new parents something to ponder or laugh about during their middle-of-the-night feedings. Offer your guests a permanent marker and a clean disposable diaper. Ask everyone to write something – advice, a joke, or a word of encouragement – on the front of the diaper. Your words will let them know that they are always surrounded by friends and family, even in the darkest hour of the night.
The average baby goes through approximately 2200 diaper changes a year. That’s a lot of diapers! Give the new parents a break by asking guests to bring a package of diapers (in all sizes). For every package they bring, they can add their name to a raffle. Raffle off several different things such as wine or gift cards to movie theatres.
Start saving for college now! Set up a piggy bank on the gift table. Every time someone says “Baby” they need to put a coin in the piggy bank. If you want to give the mother-to-be any advice, you need to put a dollar in the bank.
