Tips for hosting a virtual Baby Shower
 

Are you due to have a baby? How exciting that you are soon going to welcome a new little bundle of joy into your life. Things are so different now with this dreaded virus, not allowing us to celebrate special events the same.  So how are you going to celebrate your pregnancy and your up and coming new arrival when you can’t have a baby shower with your family and friends…

As a maternity and newborn photographer I meet lots of new mums and mums to be and I want to help you all have the best possible virtual baby shower. Please don’t let lockdown stop you celebrating, organise a virtual baby shower or get one of your besties to arrange it for you. Give everyone something special to look forward to and get all your special people together online.

Here are some hints and tips to help you plan an amazing baby shower that you will remember forever. Make sure you download our Virtual Baby Shower Checklist  to help get you all organised - make sure you read to the end to get this. 

Before you start planning your virtual baby shower it's important to decide if you will host this yourself or allocate a special family/ friend to do all the planning for you? Once you have decided and nominated your host if it won't be yourself then the planning can begin.. 

who to invite

I think the best thing to start with first is who you want to be at your baby shower, this helps you decide the best date, time, venue, games etc, which will suit the majority of your choosen guests. The good thing with it being online is that numbers, location etc doesn't come into it... So write a list of your nearest and dearest and those people you want to celebrate this special moment with you as you get ready to welcome your baby into the world. 
 

What date and time

Now looking at your guestlist think about what would suit the majority of people when picking a date and time, Are people working? stay at home mums? When do people have child-care? The good thing is most people don't have a lot of things going on at the moment so the majority should be able to attend your baby shower. 

venue

Choose A Venue

Now it's time to decide on your venue.. There is so many different options for online get togethers but its important you pick the one that will work best for you and your guests. There is Skype, Google Hangouts, Zoom, Facebook to name a few. I would suggest picking the one you are most confident and familiar with. Bear in mind some loved-ones may not be the best with technology so make sure its easy to use and have a test run with people you think may struggle to log in.

I love zoom and have used this for most of my online events during lockdown, bear in mind the free plan does have a 40 min time limit.  

Create A Timeline For The Event

This is optional but I would recommend setting up a timeline for your event especially if you are having a load of guests. When everyone hasn’t seen everyone for ages time can run away with all the hellos and catch ups, time may run away with itself and your party will be over before it  has started.

40 Minute Timeline

1-1.05pm – welcome and hellos to all those that arrive and this allows everyone to check their set ups and get online and ready.

1.05-1.25pm – It's party time – scroll down and I have some fab game ideas for you

1.25-1.35pm – Open gifts – skip this step if you would rather not open gifts during the party and continue playing games

1.35-1.40pm – Virtual Goodbyes – Its time to say goodbye

90 Minute Timeline

1-1.10pm - Welcome and hellos to all those that arrive and this lets everyone check their set ups and get online and ready.

1.10-2pm - It's party time – scroll down and I have some fab game ideas for you

2-2.20pm - Open gifts – skip this step if you would rather not open gifts during the party and continue playing games

2.20-2.30pm- Virtual Goodbyes – Its time to say goodbye

Plan Your Invites

Next it's time to plan the invites – now you can either send a email party invitation and here you can include the links for the virtual event or you can send a paper invite. I love paper invitations and love receiving something physical in the mail – We have some great downloadable virtual baby shower invitations for you to download at the end.

Gift Ideas

Are you planning on setting up a baby gift list to give people an idea of what they can buy you. People like having an idea of what you need and what helpful items people can buy for you. Mums-to-Be who have booked their newborn sessions with us love referring people to our gift vouchers because it means someone can buy them some credit towards their session/ products (which is really a gift that lasts a lifetime)

Decorations

Decorations

Decorating for a virtual baby shower is optional, but it will certainly help you get in the mood and feel the excitement. If you are planning a baby shower for someone else I would certainly get daddy-to-be roped in to help decorate mummies living room on the sly so she can have a lovely surprise, you can have some nice balloons, banners, plates and napkins and make it a proper celebration. 

If you are using zoom then you can also allocate a zoom background to your event, so no need to worry about decorations. 

games and activities

Virtual Baby Shower Games and Activities

Who's that baby – Before the call  starts everyone has to send a baby picture to the host and guests try and guess who is who

how well do you know mum?

How well do you know mum? Get guests to fill in their answers to how well do they know mum before the even – mum gets asked the questions on the event and gets the little cards to keep as a keepsake afterwards. Download yours here 
 

Guess the Number – Mummy holds up a jar filled with sweeties (mummies favourites) and all guests guess how many are inside – mummy gets to keep and eat all the goodies afterwards.

some advice for mum

Some advice for mum- Get guests to fill in advice for mum before the event, then read some of these out to mum during the event and then mummy gets to keep these cards afterwards. Download yours here 

The price is right – Have an array of baby items and everyone has to guess the cost – have some weird ones in there because it gets everyone talking about how things have changed since they had kids etc
 

mummy or daddy game

Mummy or daddy - A great wee game to get guests to fill in before hand or during the event. Download yours HERE 

Name that baby song – the host plays different nursery rhymes and guests have to guess the song

Sweet Baby Predictions - A great wee game to get guests to fill in before hand or during the event. Download yours HERE 
 

Who doesn't like some games without a prize... Its nice to have some prizes available for the winners... Here is some idea's to support local businesses too. A sweet treat box from a local company – we use Rokozy, a cake treat box delivered – if your local we love Sweet Bakery  or an afternoon tea – If your local we love Finnegans 

I hope this has helped you plan the best virtual baby shower, I have put together a host of FREE downloadables from invites, checklists, templates - download yours HERE ... Please let us know how your event goes. 

Love and Hugs

Nicole 

P.S- If you are local i have a great facebook page for central scotland mums if you want to join - click here... And also make sure you follow me on facebook and instagram to be keep up to date with what im up to and also any offers etc.