When I was pregnant with Little, one of the big things I looked forward to was my baby shower.  I ended up having a few thanks to the generosity of some really great family, friends, and co-workers.

Sure, we got a lot of the essentials for baby at these showers.  But, the thing I remember most about each of them was just how loved and celebrated I felt.  It was such a great reminder to me of the great community that we have while also being reassuring that our children were already so incredibly loved even before they were born.

This post is sponsored by Basic Invite.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Since then, it is even more special when I get to plan a baby shower for an expecting friend of family member.  Of course, having two small children, I don’t get to host showers as often as I’d like, but when the opportunity arises, I’m always happy to do it – or at least help out any way I can.

Today, I’ve partnered with Basic Invite to share with you some tips for planning the perfect baby shower for the new mama-to-be in your life as well as some really fun baby shower invitations that are totally customizable no matter what baby shower theme you pick!

How to Plan the Perfect Baby Shower

First, I want to be clear that the “perfect” baby shower doesn’t necessarily mean the most expensive or elaborate.  It doesn’t have to look like it’s off the front page of Pinterest and it certainly doesn’t have to get a thousand likes on Instagram.

Planning a baby shower doesn’t have to be stressful.

The perfect baby shower is the one where the mama-to-be is surrounded by love and celebration.  Whether there are 5 people or 50 in attendance, that’s the goal.  To shower the expecting mama, make her feel special, and share in her joy and anticipation at the upcoming arrival of her little baby.

So then, here are my top tips to help you do just that.

Get Ideas from the Expecting Mama

Since the expecting mama is the guest of honor, be sure to talk with her first about her preferences for the shower.  These include, date(s), time of day, favorite (and least favorite) snacks and food, any special theme requests, and the guest list.  You’ll want to honor her preferences as much as possible.

Put it on the Calendar

Once you’ve talked with the new mom, the next thing to do is pick a date and time for the shower.  You’ll want to have the shower no later than 4 weeks out from the due date to allow enough time for mom to get all the gifts sorted and put away at home, and to be able to wash any new baby clothes so they’ll be ready for baby’s arrival.  This also give a little time for mom and dad to purchase any remaining things before the baby is born.

Weekends are typically best, although I have hosted an after work dinner shower for some friends at one of our favorite restaurants that was really fun too.

The best time for a baby shower tends to be between meal times so that you can avoid serving a full meal – think of mid-late morning, or afternoon.

Enlist the Help of a Co-host/Friend

This is huge – especially if you already have little kids at home.  But ask for help.  You don’t have to do it all on your own.  Dividing responsibilities makes it that much easier on everyone.

Somethings to think about dividing:

• Who will host the baby shower in their home?
• Menu planning:  Will one person be responsible for food, or can you each choose a few things to make?
• Decorating: Who will do what?  Maybe one person can decorate and the other do the food?
• Games: Each of you could be responsible for one baby shower game.
• Invitations and Guest List: I actually think that this needs to be the responsibility of just one person otherwise, it can get confusing.  Decide who will be in charge of sending invites and keeping up with RSVPs.

Decide on a Theme

Once you’ve picked a date and enlisted help, the next step is to decide on a theme.  It’s possible that the new mom already has a theme or color scheme in mind.  If so, go with it.  If not, be creative.  There are almost endless ideas on Pinterest these days and you can really make it as simple or as elaborate as you want.

Write it Down

I’m actually planning to do a full, more in-depth post on this in the future, but I think this one is absolutely THE KEY to planning a stress-free party of any kind.  Write it down.  Write everything down.

I’ve got a template that I use for our parties that has a space for the guest list and RSVP count, a list of activities and supplies needed for each, the menu, grocery list, and any quick recipes I need to jot down, and any other things that have been delegated to others.

Not only does this help me keep track of everything, it also serves as a checklist (and shopping list) to make sure I don’t forget anything.

Create and Send the Invitations

Once you’ve settled on the big details, it’s time to get those invitations out.  For parties like this, I recommend getting invitations out about 4 weeks in advance.  This gives guests a chance to get the invitation, check their calendars and adjust them if needed, and RSVP in a timely manner.

I won’t lie.  If I’m throwing a last minute party, I often opt for a quick, electronic invitation.  BUT, for special events such as a baby shower, weddings, graduations, I always prefer a beautiful paper invitation.

A paper invitation is a great way to make the event a little more personal and serves as a special keepsake for the guest of honor.  I still have copies of my baby shower invitations in our boys’ keepsake boxes.

Here’s where Basic Invite comes in.  They make designing the perfect invitation SO EASY with their fully customizable baby shower invitations.  I’m actually planning a baby shower for a cousin of mine next month and I was blown away at how simple it is to create a beautiful, custom invitation.  You can even order a sample of your invitation (or a few samples of invitations for comparison’s sake) before you place your final order.

There are so many beautiful designs to choose from, but I am really loving all these nautical baby shower invitations for the summer!

Other Things I Love About Basic Invite

So Many Color Options

Have you ever found the perfect invitation design only to realize that it was totally the wrong color scheme?  Basic Invite is one of the few sites that allows customers to choose from almost unlimited color options.

Once you decide on a design, you’re able to change the color of each element of the invitation’s design (as well as the fonts and textbox locations!).  And with over 180 colors to choose from, you can be sure to get every little detail just how you want it to match any color scheme!

Foil Options

In addition to tons of color options, you can also choose gold, silver, or rose gold foil designs if you wish.  Beautiful?  Yes.

Over 40 Different Envelope Colors

Not only are there a ton of colors to choose from for the invitations, but Basic Invite also offers over 40 different colors to choose from for your envelopes as well.  That’s one way to get your guests’ attention as soon as they open the mailbox.

You definitely don’t want it to be mixed up with junk mail!

The best part?  All the envelopes are peel and seal so you don’t have to spend time wetting each individual envelope.

Address Capturing Service

Finally, my FAVORITE part of Basic Invite, in case all the customization options weren’t enough – they offer a great address capturing service that allows you to create a shareable link that you can use to request family and friends use to send you their updated mailing information.

That is incredibly helpful to have on hand – especially when it’s time to start sending those Christmas cards (and they’ll even print them on Christmas card orders at no additional cost!) later in the year.

BONUS: Right now Basic Invite is offering 15% off with coupon code: 15FF51

Finally, Put Your Plans into Action and Enjoy the Party

Finally, once all the prep work is done, decide when you’ll actually need to start getting things together and ready for the baby shower.  I recommend having decorations completed and out the day before.  This includes food trays where applicable so you can see where everything should go.  Prepare any food that can be prepped early as well.

On the day of the baby shower, you’ll want to make sure that you are fully present to celebrate the new mama.

A key thing to remember though is that no matter how well you plan the baby shower (or any event, really), something will inevitably not go exactly as you planned it because that’s how these things work.  Be flexible and adjust.  The point is the celebration anyway.

Just like I say when it comes to doing things with your kids, it doesn’t have to be exactly perfect to be memorable.  The same is true here.

Do you enjoy hosting parties or showers?  Why or why not?  What tips do you have for planning successful events?  Let me know in the comments!