When Is The Best Time To Have A Baby Shower

A baby shower is a great way to spend time with your close friends and family and being showered with a lot of baby gifts is also pretty good fun. A further great aspect of a baby shower is that it is reasonably easy to plan, although deciding just when you should hold your party can sometimes present problems.

If you are first time parents then having a baby shower before the birth makes perfect sense as you almost certainly will not have any baby gear yet and you will require all manner of things the moment the baby arrives. But, a baby shower is also the perfect time for family and friends to see the new bundle of joy and so having the shower after the birth also makes perfect sense. Here is some advice therefore which you may find helpful when it comes to making your decision about timing.

One benefit of holding your baby shower after the birth is that the guests are going to know the baby's gender, name, and birth statistics. Knowing these details makes it much easier to choose gifts, especially if the gift is something which needs to be engraved. In addition, holding the event a month or so after the birth allows you time to get back to looking your 'best'.

Having the shower after the birth can also work particularly well when the child is a second or third child as generally you will already have the basics to hand and your family and friends can focus their attention on purchasing essential everyday necessities such as clothing and diapers.

But, holding your party before the baby is born means that you, instead of the new child, can be the focus of attention. Eyes are going to be trained on you and you will get all the pampering. In addition, having looked through all of the gifts you are still going to have another month or so to go shopping for the bits and pieces you still need. Of course many expectant mothers know the gender of their unborn child and have already picked out the decorations for the nursery so gift giving can still be specific. Planning for your party in advance of the birth also provides you with something to look forward to at a time when you may well be simply wishing that your pregnancy was over.

Yet another thing to consider is what you want to play by way of baby shower games. For a lot of people games are a key element of any shower and the games that you select may well differ depending upon whether the party is held before or after the birth. There is an enormous range of games available including things like a pass the parcel baby shower game and these also need to be considered when thinking about when to have your shower.

Deciding exactly when you should hold your baby shower is very much something that needs to be done on a case-by-case basis, but you should not delay your decision on when to hold it as no planning can be done until you have come up with a date. If you do decide to have the party before the baby arrives then it is a good idea to schedule it during the seventh or eighth month of pregnancy and, if you are going to have it following the birth, then it is a good idea to wait at least four to six weeks after the birth to allow yourself time to bond with your new baby.