Tag Archives: Baby Shower Games

Pumpkin All the Baby Things! Fall Baby Shower Ideas

It’s that time of year again. Time for pumpkin coffee and pumpkin muffins and pumpkin ice cream and pumpkin shampoo and pumpkin dog food . . . oh, you get the picture. Well, if you are going to pumpkin all the things, you might as well not stop at baby showers.

Erin was pretty blown away when she went to this baby shower last fall, so of course she harassed the host until she coughed up all of her secrets. Now we are sharing all of her fall baby shower ideas with you. You can decide for yourself if this party is perfect for your little pumpkin.

Games

We know we have expressed our opinion about baby shower games in the past, but maybe we are softening in our old age or maybe the sheer volume of fun to be had just wore us down.

Pen and Paper Games

This is the treasure trove of paper party games. Click on this link and unlock a bundle of Baby Shower Games which include Bingo, Word Scramble, Name the Baby Animals, Celebrity Baby Names, What’s in Your Purse?, Price is Right, and Nursery Rhyme Quiz. Use a little or a lot. They are adorable, fun, and easy entertainment all packaged and ready to go with cute little pumpkins and everything.

Cutest Baby Contest

Of course if you want to crank the fun up to epic, it’s time to pull out the glue and glitter. This Cutest Baby Contest was the hands down favorite. Simply put, you provide a pile of washed potatoes and a boatload of craft supplies to a captive audience looking for fun. Just sit back and watch the magic happen. One caveat: If you are hosting the baby shower at your house, then skip this game altogether. Glitter is evil.

Decorate the Onesie

Everything about this is fun. Just remember to buy onesies in different sizes, wash everything before the party, and make sure you use only fabric markers and fabric paint. If you don’t, you could have a Nancy Drew mystery on your hands: The Case of the Disappearing Paint.

Measure the Belly

This is a game that would have probably made Erin dropkick someone if she had ever been able to summon anything more energetic than a waddle during her pregnancies, but this mom-to-be was adorable and friendly and happier than any pregnant woman we have ever met. Here’s hoping your mom-to-be has the same batch of pregnancy hormones, because people, especially all of the older aunties, LURVED this one. You can order your own Tummy Tape here.

Smell the Diaper

This is one of the grosser baby shower games but it provides adorable photo opps like this one so who can argue?

Tree of Good Advice

This is not so much a game as a tree-mendous idea that keeps on giving. Guests write good advice and then hang it on a tree or, in this case, some lovely fall boughs. The best part: you end up with gems like this. My heart melts.

Prizes

Don’t forget to have prizes for all the good sports who joined in the forced but fantastic frolicking. We loved the hosts’ ideas here too. She said she picked them all up at The Dollar Store.

Food

All good parties need good eats. The host of this party had a great spread that was very make-ahead friendly.

Easy Harvest Punch

This punch tasted like autumn in a glass. It turns out that apple cider, not apple juice, adds the depth of flavor. The recipe even contains instructions if you want to offer a “spiked” version too.

Red Peppers and Feta Bruschetta

Lightly toasted bread provided a great base for this savory appetizer. We would eat these on a train and in the rain and most definitely at a baby shower. Yum.

Ham and Cheese Sandwiches

Fresh rye bread from Wegman’s was apparently the key to the yum in this case, but the simple idea was well worth imitating. There was not a sandwich left over.

Pumpkin Dip

Step 1: Place store-bought ginger snap into this delicious make-ahead dip.

Step 2: Sit back and bask in the glow of all the compliments.

Tomato and Mozzarella Bites

So simple, so delicious, and so easy to make ahead of time. This is the fall, party version of one of our favorite summer recipes.

Hard-Boiled Baby Carriages

These made Erin’s uterus hurt a little with the cuteness factor. Bonus: they aren’t that hard to make. Worth every toothpick, let me tell ya.

The CAKE!

You might not be able to have our awesome cousin make this cake for your baby shower but you can take this picture to your favorite bakery and demand some similar cuteness for your party. The oohs and ahhs are worth it.

Fall Baby Shower Food Ideas--Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

And then there is the cake that you MUST have,

but that will not, cannot, SHOULD not be eaten . . .

The Ultimate Diaper Cake

Finally, here is the link for all the printables . Now you can pumpkin all the invitations and place cards and paper products you want to your heart’s content.

Here’s hoping your own shindig is as sweet as this one was!

-Erin

Fall Baby Shower Ideas--Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

And look at the little Sweetie who came just a little while later!

Pumpkin All the Things! Including your Fall Baby Shower. Games, Food & Ideas Galore!

Click To Tweet

Share it real good . . .

10 Things A New Mom Should Do (Besides Sleep)

2 Replies

Erin recently attended the cutest baby shower ever. The adorableness was off the charts, even with the games. You know how we love those!

Erin might have throat-punched someone who tried to measure her at the end of her pregnancy. But then she wasn’t this cute pregnant.

Seriously, could the Mom-to-Be be any cuter?? And that’s a bouquet of onesies, baby towels, and washcloths she’s holding! Genius.

And all the merry-making brought us priceless moments like this one.

Nothing says “I Love you” like smelling fake baby shizz for you.

And the hostess had lots of beautiful touches that really made the shower super special.

That’s a tree of good advice and wishes, a fabulous diaper cake, and an awesome baby stuck in a cake.

But Erin’s favorite touch was definitely the tree. It contained gems like this one from her sister-in-law, Kim.

It definitely made us both a little nostalgic for the old days of new baby smell, fuzzy blankies, and adorable onesies. We both have our oldest “babies” in high school now. Time has marched on, taught us a few things, and even had its way with us.

Time has also dealt us a healthy dose of perspective. If we were to go back in time and meet our younger selves, these are some of the things we would definitely tell them to do now. Consider it our contribution to the tree of good advice and well wishes.

1. Chill out. Looking back at how worked up we could get about certain things (milestone meeting, potty-training, and early school stuff), we cringe for our younger selves. Time has taught us that babies who walked at 8 months don’t look any different than those who first walked at 15 months when they are entering kindergarten. We could have used a nice telephoto lens into the future back then. . . or a back rub and a glass of wine.

2. Trust the Momma instincts. We second-guessed ourselves a lot back then. Time has proven that our gut instincts where our kids are concerned are dead on. Erin truly didn’t learn this lesson until her 4th child was born. Something was just “off” with him, and she was worried—that deep, sick-in-your-stomach, can-barely-say-the-words-aloud kind of scared—about what could be wrong.

So she burst into the doctor’s office at his one year check-up, held her head up, and laid out her case. And, wonder of wonders, this beautiful doctor did not dismiss any of her concerns. As it turned out, Erin’s baby had really, really poor eyesight correctable with glasses.

Erin: From the moment that baby held my face in his hands when he finally saw me through his new glasses, I have been a new mom. I would love to hug the younger me and tell her just how smart and capable she was.

3. Read Mom Blogs. Erin’s first baby was born in 1997, and Ellen’s the next summer. We barely did email back then. The online support and verification that our kids were NOT, despite all the evidence we were amassing, the spawn of Satan would have been extremely helpful and comforting. The lovely network of mothers supporting and encouraging one another through this big adventure would have been oh so welcome. . .

4. Find a Flock. . . . As was the very real, very supportive network we found in our local MOMS Club. Finding another mom that is right with you on the road is so important—birds of a feather and all that. You can all muddle through this parent thing together. And misery DOES love company.

5. Put Away the Parenting Books. We are both readers so it was natural for us to go there, but the conflicting advice and the nagging sense that we weren’t “one size fits all” kind of parents left us feeling a little lost.

Erin: Again, time proved that my inclinations were just fine, but the fact that I was “a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll” fueled my early mom insecurities. Now, I would read less parenting books and watch some more crappy TV.

6. Play, Play, Play. We played a lot with our kids, but this easy time with toys and silliness is over way too soon. Savor every minute.

7. Get a Decent Haircut. Ellen somehow knew this from day one.

Ellen: It’s a curly-hair thing.

Erin: I couldawouldashoulda have taken a little more time for me from the very beginning. I had 3 kids in 3 years, and my needs were deadlast in every equation. Looking back, this was a mistake in every respect. I let my family consume me, and it showed. Once I decided to take some time for me and scheduled some time for that decent haircut, I also developed the confidence that I was on the right track.

8. Write Down All the Funny Things Our Kids Said. We have always been fairly decent recorder of our kids’ lives. Erin even tried scrapbooking for awhile until Baby #4 came along. But we both wish, wish, WISH that we had kept a notebook with us at all times and gotten every last scrap of adorable and funny. Kids get big and beautiful and strong and competent, but they definitely lose their cute factor and you miss it when it’s gone. It would be nice to have every last morsel to savor when those days are behind you.

9. GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!

Erin: I had a honeymoon baby nine months after I moved to Maine. I had a few people I knew from work, but no real support network AT ALL. This is something I would definitely insist upon doing now. I would definitely take Ellen’s advice to get a babysitter at least twice a month so my husband and I could have a break simultaneously.

Ellen: Without the drudgery of the kids strangling you both, you can remember why you brought them into this world and discover that you do still like each other. This is a suggestion that usually draws a lot of protest from new moms, but I can’t stress its importance enough. Maybe I could convince everyone that it is easier than a mental breakdown?”

Amen, Sister!

10. Appreciate the moment. It seems silly to explain this one, but ssssssllllllloooooowwwww down. Breathe in their little baby smells until you can’t NOT smell them.

Ellen once said that mothering infants and toddlers was the hardest thing she ever did, and she did time in a trauma center. Stay strong, Sisters. They’ll be teenagers before you know it. Sniff. Sniff.

-Erin and Ellen

What would you add to the tree? What would you say to a younger mom? Your younger self?

Share it real good . . .

Facebook Follow-Up Friday #17

2 Replies

Because Facebook doesn’t show all of our followers all of the awesomeness all of the time we have . . .

One of the most entertaining things about writing a weekly wrap-up is seeing how the Facebook updates and blog posts shake down and flow together. We love to find a common thread for these follow-ups but we never go into a week planning a theme; we just have to look in the rear view mirror and see what happened. You know, like when you swerve to miss a chipmunk and you look back praying there isn’t a bloody mess? Well anyway, for this week the common thread is seriously “Poop and Party.” See if you agree.

Happenings on Facebook

Posting this graphic:

Click here to see the comments.

Led to this discussion:

I put up a funny graphic about toilet paper this morning. A reader commented about some people using cloth squares instead because of the fear of the chemicals in toilet paper.
I must get your opinions:
How do you feel about reusable toilet paper?

I’m sharing a link to an article that is very balanced about the pros and cons. Family Cloths: Reusable Toilet Wipes, Gross or Great? Discuss.

Click here to see the hilarious discussion. Things like “Hell NO!” may have been muttered more than once. Even many fans of cloth diapers couldn’t get on board with this. We were wondering who had enough time in their lives to wash, dry, and snap back together this Etsy roll. Our toilet paper spindles are left empty enough of the time as it is.

Source: etsy.com via Sisterhood on Pinterest

So you see the poop, but where’s the party?

Finding the Funny!

The party is going on at Finding the Funny! There’s still time to link up your own humorous post or just scroll around for something to brighten your day. You know what brightened Ellen’s day? Avoiding this disaster:

But what’s a party without gifts?

Well how about a chance to win a Custom Facebook Cover made by the fabulous graphic designer Sara at Cormier Creative? That would give your blog or even your personal Facebook page a boost.

Use the Rafflecopter form below to enter. (And be sure to visit Sara at Cormier Creative!) Giveaway ends on Sunday, June 16 at midnight.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If it’s a party, you need cake!

Try Ellen’s Nutella Pound Cake. You will not be disappointed.

Source: sisterhoodofthesensiblemoms.com via Sisterhood on Pinterest

This is Where We Put the “And” in “Poop and Party”

We laid it out there in our new post: We Hate Baby Shower Games.

We even introduced a few more games of our own. Let’s us know if you think they are kaka or crazy good.

Source: sisterhoodofthesensiblemoms.com via Sisterhood on Pinterest

We’ve Found Bloggers to Love Who See the Humor in Poop Too

Science of Parenthood is our new blog crush. Created by Norine and Jessica, their tagline says it all – “Because raising kids defies all reason, logic and most of the laws of the universe.” Go check them out. There are more illustrations where this one came from. They have a whole The Scoop On … Poop (And Other Potty-Related Things) Pinterest board.

Source: scienceofparenthood.com via Science Of Parenthood on Pinterest

Ending on a Party Note

While you’re checking people out on the party scene, we recommend you follow us, too. You can squeeze it in before going to the store for more toilet paper.

In fact, you can follow us in all of these places.

Follow @SensibleMoms on Twitter

Want our blog posts delivered directly to your inbox? Follow us on Bloglovin. We highly recommend it.

-Ellen and Erin

Share it real good . . .

We Hate Baby Shower Games

27 Replies

Yes, the usually perky, always ready for some fun Sensible Moms is throwing it down: We hate baby shower games.

Erin: Just to be clear, we did not say we hate the actual baby showers.

Ellen: We enjoy the sweet celebrations of new life and new motherhood. And the cake. Baby shower cakes are always good.

Erin: But most of all, we especially enjoy seeing another sucker, I mean newbie, accepted into the fold.

Ellen: But the games, oh, the games! I was so grateful that my best friend and I made a pact that there would be NO games at ANY of our showers of ANY kind – not bridal, nor baby, nor communal. There are just so boring, pointless, and more often than not, humiliating.

Erin: Communal? I don’t want to know. But in my experience, I hate them because they are a time suck. Opening the gazillion presents takes forever, then you want to add on games? Ain’t nobody got time for that.

Ellen: Now I’m feeling a little harsh. Maybe Baby Shower Bingo is okay? You know, where you circle baby items received on a bingo card? That game trudges along during the present opening.

Erin: No mercy. I was recently at a shower where the cards were BLANK! You had to fill in your own items. If you hadn’t had a baby in the past 6 years, you were hard pressed to guess what was coming out of those boxes. I didn’t know what some of that stuff was. But my mother rocked it. She filled in her card AFTER the presents were opened. She won.

Ellen: Love. That. Your mother has inspired me anew to zing some games. Let’s get on it.

1. My Water Broke!

So for this little gem, you cryogenically suspend plastic babies in ice cube trays. Okay you’re just freezing them, but this game needs all the promotion sizzle it can get because basically you’re watching ice melt. Fun. You put a little creeper cube in each party guest’s beverage and when she sees the baby free floating in her drink she hollers, “My Water Broke!” Like we said, fun.

Source: confettiprints.com via Sisterhood on Pinterest

Erin: My family was able to up the fun on this! So at the same shower where my mom was bamboozling the bingo, my aunt was sucking on her ice cube like a mad woman to free her baby first. It was perversely hilarious! She would not be beaten.

Ellen: For the love of plastic fetuses, you come by your competitive nature honestly.

2. How Big Is That Belly?

Everyone has to take a guess at how big around the guest of honor is. Seriously. Then of course, she has to be measured to see who wins.

Erin: Perhaps the inspiration for this game came from a cattle auction? I’ve seen it classed up even further where instead of using a tape measure – because , you know, you want to save the mother-to-be the embarrassment of having her digits announced – you guess her girth in sheets of toilet paper.

Ellen: The mark of a truly fantastic shower game is to work toilet paper into it. But the entertainment value of this game comes from it’s follow-up game: Pregnant Woman Shanks The Guest Implying She Is Bigger Than A Hippo.

3. What’s The Poop?

This game is also known as “Dirty Diaper.” You take a stack of newborn diapers, smear a different food substance that resembles crap on each one, and then pass them around for the victims to guess what they are. Some versions have you melting different types of candy bars, but true dookie veterans use things like tapioca pudding and Dijon mustard. If you’ve done newborn diaper duty, you know it does NOT look like chocolate.

Ellen: I was forced to play the version that had things like mustard and pureed peas on them. We were given toothpicks to sample the fares as they passed by to help us in our identification. Gives a new layer of disgusting to double dipping.

Erin: I will see your double dipping and raise you licking! When I looked this game up to see if it was for real, the instructions said to pass around the candy encrusted poop slings and have everyone lick them. Lick. Them.

Ellen: This game is no good. It also brings back bad memories. I call bullshiz on anyone who has kids and claims not to have come at least close to getting poop in her mouth. We don’t have to talk about it, but let’s not deny it.

Erin: This game should come with a counselor in the corner.

We could go on, but we’d rather suggest some new games of our own. Seriously, if it’s okay to ask guests to lick a communal melted Hershey bar you’re parading around as poop, these should be acceptable.

1. How Dilated Is She?

The lucky guest who finds the sterile surgical gloves under her luncheon plate gets to check!

2. Canned Ham or Pregnant Feet?

Take a picture of a gelatinous hunk of pork and one of the guest of honor’s feet, attach them to a poster board and have guests guess! To up the fun, have guests vote by dropping sausage links into their chosen ballot box.

3. Scoop the Litter Box

We all should know that a pregnant woman is freed from cat doodie duty for the health of the baby. If your guest of honor has a cat, this game is a gift as well as just plain good old fashioned fun. Everyone gets a shot at scooping the box. One lucky winner walks away with a purse sized Bath & Body Works hand sanitizer in her scooper!

Feel free to use any of these for your own party because we were thinking of taking this show on the road anyway. Maybe we should go into business like the Menarche R’Us people – Awkward Baby Shower Games R’Us?

-Erin and Ellen

Share it real good . . .