NWR: Cash baby shower - vent

jdluvr06

This reminds me if a funny story. When my sister was pregnant my mom and I went a little overboard buying baby clothes and other cute things we decided the baby had to have. We have this program on my moms computer to make invitations, cards, ect. Anyway the three of us are trying to design the invites for the shower and we had three or four different designs picked out. As a joke my sister typed "please do not bring clothes my mom and sister have bought the stores out". Well without realizing it my mom printed and sent out the one my sister typed that on. So she got absolutely no cute clothes at her baby shower.

arrippa

She asked for cash for her shower. Are you surprised she isn't sending out TY cards? This has rudeness written all over from day one.

muenginerd

I did go to a baby shower for a college friend where gifts where not accepted.  The couple did not suggest cash but their family members did suggest that baby store gift cards would be helpful.  However, this was very culturally driven.  The family believed it was very bad luck to accept a gift for the baby before the baby was born.  This was a small exception where I did not have a problem giving a gift card for a baby shower, knowing the family would be in a rush to prepare the home once the baby is born.  We did buy the baby a cute outfit from our school but just told Mom we have a special present we'll bring over once the baby was here.  The couple did not throw the shower as an expectation of gift cards but because the rest of us wanted to celebrate their upcoming baby.

The couple in this post though... yeah maybe alittle wrong....

delujm0

muenginerd said:

I did go to a baby shower for a college friend where gifts where not accepted.  The couple did not suggest cash but their family members did suggest that baby store gift cards would be helpful.  However, this was very culturally driven.  The family believed it was very bad luck to accept a gift for the baby before the baby was born.  This was a small exception where I did not have a problem giving a gift card for a baby shower, knowing the family would be in a rush to prepare the home once the baby is born.  We did buy the baby a cute outfit from our school but just told Mom we have a special present we'll bring over once the baby was here.  The couple did not throw the shower as an expectation of gift cards but because the rest of us wanted to celebrate their upcoming baby.

The couple in this post though... yeah maybe alittle wrong....

I heard about this recently from an Indian coworker.  I beleve she is hindu - in thi religion, it is considered bad luck to buy items for a baby before it is born.  So they went out and picked out a crib, changing table, etc ahead of time but didn't buy it...and after the baby was born her husband and in-laws were running around to various stores for DAYS to make sure that the house was set up before she came home.  It sounds crazy to me but this is a cultural/religious issue which i completely understand.

 

That having been said, she did NOT have a baby shower, because it would have been bad luck to accept gifts prior to he birth.  Therefore, no one gave her, and she did not recive, cash, gift cards, etc. before the baby was born. Our team at work did send her a gift card after the birth though.

lovesclimbing

@muenginerd in the scenario you describe, the polite thing to do would be either have no baby shower or have it after the baby is born.  I have been to several post-birth showers and they're always fun and people can see the baby.

muenginerd

lovesclimbing said:

@muenginerd in the scenario you describe, the polite thing to do would be either have no baby shower or have it after the baby is born.  I have been to several post-birth showers and they're always fun and people can see the baby.

yes probably, but the push was mostly through many friends who wanted to have a baby shower for her.  So I guess the fault is on us as her friends because we really set it up with her family to do it, but all in all it was still fun to get together and celebrate the parents to be.