Wedding Etiquette Forum

NWR - Baby Shower

I'm sorry if we've talked about this recently but I have a couple questions on a baby shower.

My mom is making my sister and I throw my SIL a shower (okay, my mom is doing all the work and calling us the hosts). SIL was pretty rude about the wedding shower we tried to throw her so I'm a little salty.

Do I have to buy her a gift also? Or is the shower considered the gift? We're not typically a gift-giving family. My siblings and I never exchange gifts on birthdays or Christmas, if that matters.

Also, what baby shower games do you guys think are the least stupid and lame?

Thank you!!!!

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Re: NWR - Baby Shower

  • I think the shower is a very nice gift in itself, but I would probably still give her a little something. If you don't want to spend the money but want to spend time with the baby, what if you offered your babysitting services? I'm sure it would be appreciated, and it would cost you anything.

    I hate most shower games, but like LIatris, I like the bingo game. It makes the gift-opening time more exciting (or as exciting as it can be for the person not giving/receiving the present). My MIL is big into the shower game where you have to guess the nursery rhyme based on a few words.

    Good luck!
  • itzMSitzMS member
    2500 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers First Anniversary

    Since showers are gift-giving events, I always give a gift. If it helps, think of it like the gift is for the baby (presumably your niece or nephew?) not for snippy SIL.

    Baby shower bingo is your best bet. All of the other games are either lame (chocolate bar diapers, don't say the word "baby", etc) or kind of condescending to the mom-to-be (measure the belly, etc)

  • I don't hate the Bingo games or the alphabet game (mom-to-be comes up with baby-related word for every letter of the alphabet and if you get the most words the same as she chose, you win). I also had fun at the last shower I was at tasting baby food and guessing what it was. I hate the candy bar in the diaper game, though. 


    What did you think would happen if you walked up to a group of internet strangers and told them to get shoehorned by their lady doc?~StageManager14
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  • I'd give a gift too. Bingo is one of the easier games along with the egg timer game
  • If you are graphic and technologically able, I have seen a sheet of all baby photos of relatives and people close to the mother to be. The game is to then guess which photo is which family member. The person who gets the most correct wins. Some are easy to guess (recent nieces/nephews born) and the time period helps (black and white or not) but some can be more difficult.

    This obviously requires a lot of planning and scanning of photos, but is a really cool personal touch if done well. 

    Here's an example of one online (for some contest that has apparently already passed) but it shows the idea:

    Daisypath Anniversary tickers

    image 293 (Adults) Invited
    image198 Yes (+ 12 children and 3 babies)
    image95 No
    image0 Unknown

  • I'd give a small gift or go in with your mother and sister or even someone else on one.

    But games aren't necessary.
  • I had my own shower, and I've thrown 2 showers.

    For the two showers I threw, I did baby trivia. I looked up facts about babies and pregnancies, and made a multiple answer question sheet. I went over the answers in the end and had people tell me their scores. I gave a prize to whoever got the most right.

    The other game I did was baby price is right. I created a sheet in paint where i pasted pictures of common baby items from pics on the internet, along with the description. They had to write in the approximate prices they thought each one was and just add the total up in the end. Whoever was closest to the "actual retail price" (in my bob barker voice) won.

    I gave good prizes. $5 gift cards to target. Nobody wants lotion or trinkets from the dollar store. And yes, I think you should give a gift. By your mom doing all the work and calling you the hosts, I'm assuming this means she's paying. If you're not pitching in for the actual shower, I'd get a gift. But then again I still got gifts for the 2 friends I hosted showers for.

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  • I hate shower games. Abhor is actually a better word. But at my baby shower, my sister did a game called "Break the Water". She froze tiny plastic babies in ice cubes and each guest got 1 ice cube. They had to get their baby out somehow, any way they possibly could by melting the ice cube ("breaking the water"). There were no rules, just get the baby out.

    It was freaking hilarious seeing the ideas ppl came up with to get those creepy babies out. I loved it.

    As for the gift, as the "shower-ee" I usually tsk my tongue at the person throwing me the shower if they also buy me a gift. But as a shower host, I still bring a gift. So I don't have any advice on that. :)
  • Last shower I went to had zero games, it was about 80% her older family members. I'd still get a gift if I hosted, personally. 
  • Thanks ladies!! My mom was actually one step ahead - she already bought something from the three of us. I love that she understands how broke I am.

    I'll make sure to have good gifts for the games - and that ice cube games sounds hilarious!

    Image result for someecard betting someone half your shit youll love them forever
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