For those who’ve been around for a while, you may know that I took a bit of an unintentional blogging hiatus during my pregnancy back in 2013, and in hindsight I’m a little sad that I didn’t document what a wild ride that nine months truly was. One special aspect of my pregnancy that this site hasn’t seen before was my baby showers. Because I love what a scrapbook this blog has become, I want to rewind a couple years and share some pictures from those great parties.
My first shower was in my hometown in Alabama, and it was put together by my amazing sister Jennifer and two best childhood friends Amberlee and Ashley. They hosted it at my sister’s MIL’S neighborhood clubhouse, and everything was beautiful. These girls completely blew me away with their creativity and effort! It was such a wonderful day.
Guests signed in on the inside cover of the children’s book If I Could Keep You Little. Swoon. They also filled out “Wishes for Hadley” cards that they put inside that pink and gold notebook. I couldn’t get enough of reading them after the shower. Some made me laugh while others (the majority) made me tear up big time!
My sister ordered this gorgeous “mommy to be” corsage from Etsy! Of course it has an elephant on it. #rolltide
I loved the headband station my sister set up. Each guest had the option to pick a headband base and then decorate it with flowers and designs that they picked from the basket. Afterwards each guest attached a tag saying that they’d made each specific one. Such a cute and super practical idea!
My next shower was in Birmingham and thrown by my three really good friends from college, Mary E, Brittany, and Bethy. Just like my shower in Madison, my mouth was on the floor when I walked in and saw all the decorations and food. Several of my sorority sisters came, and we had a really good time! They all made me feel very loved.
This sign made by Bethy has been hanging over Hadley’s crib since before she was born.
So I actually ended up using these diapers, and they definitely brought some humor to an otherwise not so hilarious part of having a newborn (newborn digestion is a whole thing!). I can think of a couple times that Jamie and I died laughing reading the diapers while putting them on her.
I loved the decor! For the garland, Mary Elizabeth cut up disposable plastic table cloths into strips and tied them around a strand of Christmas lights! I also got to take home all the cute stuff hanging on the wall with clothes pins. I thought the idea of decorating with the gifts themselves was brilliant! Knocks out two birds with one stone.
One of the games involved me guessing the taste of various baby foods. A few months later I put up a video of Hadley on instagram of her gagging while eating “mixed greens”, and Mary E (laughing in the orange dress) commented that that’s the exact flavor that made me gag at the shower! Hilarious!
We also played a game where each guest cut a piece of yarn that they estimated was my belly circumference. That game definitely gave us some laughs. It’s harder to guess than it looks!
My next shower was put together by several of the women in my English department at the high school I taught at, and I really appreciated the food everyone brought, the decor they set out, and the gifted we received. I worked with a great group!
Remember when I snuck up to New Hampshire last month for a baby shower? It was Jessica’s who’s pictured above! She helped with not one but two of my showers, and now she’s due with her own little girl in just a few weeks! Ahh. 🙂
My last shower was in the town I lived in at the time, Clarksville, Tennessee (Fort Campbell). Four of my very best Army friends (Michele, Jessica, Hannah, and Noel) threw the shower, and several more of my wonderful friends there in Clarksville joined us and loved on Hadley and me. They threw it at Hannah’s fabulous clubhouse one Saturday night when I was very pregnant (37 weeks!), and I loved every minute of it. They went all out with decor and food, and I remember feeling very overwhelmed when I left because of how special they made me feel
That little calendar was a due date guesser. Each guest used a stamp to mark their guess and signed their name to it. Also, I love that diaper cake! We used it as decoration in Hadley’s nursery until it was time to break into it and use it.
I learned a big lesson after my showers, and that’s that it really means a lot to the shower recipient when you show up. I’m sure many of the women who attended my showers didn’t think twice about it, but I honestly still remember every single face that showed up. Every time I saw someone walk through the door I just wanted to hug them and thank them so much for just being there.
I try to remember this now when I receive invitations to cook outs, birthday parties, showers, weddings, etc. Saying yes means a lot to the person receiving or throwing the party and that making an effort to RSVP yes and not cancel last minute means a tremendous amount to those hosting a party. Attending another party may be “just attending another party/shower”, but to the host or recipient it probably means the world!
If you’ve ever received a shower or thrown a party, surely you understand what I mean. 🙂
Hi! I’m Erica, and I absolutely adore sharing my life on this website with you! I come here almost daily to blab about all of the things related to being a regular wife and mother in today’s ever-evolving society. I share about our new home, what’s on our kitchen table, what we’re hanging in our closets, where we’re traveling to next, my crazy 5 a.m. work outs, how I make time for girlfriends, our faith, and much more. We always have a lot of balls in the air and somewhat thrive on the chaos. I believe in the power of story-telling as a form of inspiration and entertainment, so I’m here to do both! I was born and raised in north Alabama and recently re-planted roots here again after my husband transitioned out of the Army (he is now in the Reserve and it’s going so well!) I’m a super proud mom to three little girls (ages 7, 4, and 1) who seem to be the stars of the show around here (for good reason – they’re pretty great!) I’m so glad you found me and are here reading! I hope we can get to know each other here on the blog as well as Facebook and/or Instagram. xoxo