How to Throw a "Welcome to the Ward" Baby Shower

I don't know how it is in other wards, but in ours, there seems to be a constant stream of new move-ins--young couple move-ins. And in the past year, I have been to three "Welcome to the Ward Baby Showers". These can sometimes be awkward occasions because the pregnant woman can feel a little weird having a group of women she barely knows throw her a party and buy her baby presents. Most will even protest the offer of a baby shower in the new ward stating that their old ward or family has already thrown them one. I am glad my ward has already established a history of saying "We don't care. We want to do this for you" because I feel exactly the same way.

Reasons why a "Welcome to the Ward" baby shower is a great idea:

• Once you have a baby, you need a support system. It can be a lonely time for a new mom even if she has been in the same ward for years. A party helps the new mother make contact with women in the ward, enlarging her support system, before she really needs them.

• It gives the new mother's visiting teacher a pool of people to help bring in meals once the baby is born. It's nice not having to answer the question "Now who is Sara again? I don't think I have ever met her."

• Any excuse to have a party is a good one.

Like I said before, these showers can sometimes be awkward. But with proper planning they can be great fun for everyone involved.

Ways to make your "Welcome to the Ward" baby shower a success:

• If your ward is too big to just invite everyone, make sure to invite women who have the same interests and/or who are in the same situation as the new mother. Invite older women in the ward who love babies - you know the ones I am talking about-the angels that will whisk your child away from you without a word so you can peacefully enjoy a small part of church. Invite the Relief Society Presidency and the Bishopric's wives. And if you, the party thrower, are not the visiting teacher, make sure to invite them too.
  

• After the invites are sent out, talk to every person on your invite list to tell them a little bit more about the new mother and encourage them to attend. Otherwise, the invite might just get thrown onto the counter and forgotten since the name might be unrecognizable. And the worst thing in the world is to throw a shower for a new member of the ward and have no one show up. Make sure you have people that will commit to attending.

• If the new mother really doesn't need anything for the baby (because she's had other showers) and feels uncomfortable with people buying presents for her, consider going with a gift theme like baby books, homemade freezer meals, or just do one group gift. If it's a small group you might even consider having the gathering at a nail salon where you can all treat her to a manicure/pedicure.

• In some circles, baby shower games are "like totally out". Pish Posh. Games are a great way to bring people together and to liven up a party. For a "Welcome to the Ward" Baby Shower might I suggest the following trivia game: Conduct an "interview" with the guest of honor in which you find out all sorts of personal stuff about her. Her favorite foods and tv shows; her hobbies and talents; her background (schooling, career, and interesting facts etc). From this information, create a multiple choice quiz about the mother while framing each question around the baby (scroll to the bottom to see some sample questions). It's a great game to play at the beginning of the shower to get conversation rolling and a fun way for guests to get to know the mother without forced, awkward conversation.
  

• While opening gifts, have each giver tell one interesting fact about themselves to the group. This is another way for the new mother to get to know the women attending the shower (and it is great fun for all attending to hear what some women come up with!)
  

• Have the recorder of gifts include full names and addresses for the new mom whom might not yet have a ward directory.
  

For more fun baby shower ideas from Tales, go here.

A Few Sample Trivia questions:

1. If the baby were to attend Sara’s Alma Mater, what color would she be wearing:

a. Cougar blue
b. The red of a true Ute
c. Does UVSC have a color?

2. This baby will probably be born with a craving for this spicy food which Sara loves to eat:

a. Thai
b. Mexican
c. Indian

3. If babies in the womb could have passports, this one would already have a stamp from:

a. Mexico
b. Chile
c. Japan

4. It’s okay if the baby cries, just as long as she doesn’t do it during:

a. American Idol
b. Grey’s Anatomy
c. The Office

5. Sara’s little girl will always be well taken care of when it comes to:

a. her teeth, because Sara is a dental hygenist
b. her hair, because Sara is a hair stylist
c. her health, because Sara is a nurse.