Baby Shower Games
Many people groan with despair at the thought of playing Baby Shower Games, here are some fun alternatives to the traditional (and often embarrassing) baby shower games or activities.
- Set up a onesie/t-shirt decorating station
We love this cute idea! Imagine having a supply of onesies personally painted by all your friends and family with cute messages and images. Buy a range of sizes in plain cotton clothing – onesies, bibs, shirts and shorts sets. Get some fabric paints in different colours, brushes, iron-on appliques, fabric pens, rubber stamps and sponges and let your guests get creative! (Make sure all options are baby safe and washable.) Another option is to get plain cotton squares of fabric where guests paint a picture and this is made into a quilt for the expectant mom. An alternative on this theme is a “Knitting shower” where guests all knit a square in the chosen colours and this gets made into a blanket for the newborn. Practical baby shower games are bound to be appreciated by the expectant mom.
- Baby Bump:
This baby shower game focuses on the real guest of honour. All guests have to guess how big mom’s baby bump is, they then have to cut a piece of string or ribbon the length that they believe the bump is. Mom is then measured and the guest who is closest to the correct size wins. Guests can also guess the time and date of the birth by writing it on a card or calendar. After baby is born, mom can announce the winner with her thank you’s.
- Don’t call me “baby”
It is virtually impossible to not mention the b word at a shower. (See how we avoided it there!) As guests arrive give them something like a peg or a diaper pin that they then wear. Every time a guest says the word “baby” they loose their peg/pin and the person that first catches them out wins their peg/pin. This game can get very competitive with guests trying to catch each other out. The winner is the guest with the most pegs/pins at the end of all the baby shower games. This can be changed to any word to suit the theme, using even the moms name for example.
- Advice for mommy
Each guest gets a card and is asked to write down a question that the new mom may have. They then turn their card over and pass it to the next guest, who then fills out the answer to their question on the back. The host then reads the card with the question first and then the answer. The mismatch is usually very funny, especially when guests write rather ambiguous answers. Another cute idea is to write out wishes for baby cards.
- Baby Shower Bingo
This is a rather traditional baby shower game, played for many years because it is so easy and fun. Using the template attached customise the game to make it more fun. Either ask the expectant mom 24 questions and put the answers on the cards. Or fill out the cards using items listed on the registry, as mom opens the gift the guests can cross it off the card. This can also be combined with a trivia game. Guests each send a question before the party that must have a one-word answer, with the answers written on the Bingo cards. The winner is the person who manages to cross off all the gifts in a horizontal, vertical or diagonal line. Remember to have enough pens for all the guests.
- Name the Baby
This can either be done with photos of the guest at the party or using celebs or their babies. Ask each guest to bring a photo of when they were small (less than 2 years old to make it harder to guess) and pin all the images up on a board. Give each guest a piece of paper to write down who they think the baby is. The winner is the person who has the most correct answers.
- Music Trivia
Set up a mix of about 15 songs or artists that include the word “baby”. This can be adjusted to any theme for example if the theme is “You are my sunshine” then find songs with the word “sunshine” in the title. Play the first 15 seconds of the song and have guests write down their answers, the winner is the person with the most correct answers. Have a mix of songs from all genres and time periods to give all guests a fair chance. My Pretty Pennies have a great playlist for a starting point . Huff Post parents also have a great list.
- What will baby look like?
This game is a lot of fun, but there can be some very scary if not funny results. One way to play this is by using a headshot of the expecting mom and dad, or you can ask each guest to bring in a photo of himself or herself and partner/dream partner. Print out these images so that each guest gets 2 photos to cut up (mom and dad or themselves and partner). Using a template of a baby, each guest then decides which features of each partner the baby will get and glues the features to the template to create a new face for the baby. For example mom’s eyes but dads ears, etc.
- Build a library
Instead of gifts or cards, guests are asked to bring their favourite children’s book so that the expectant parents can build a library. This is also a great idea for the mom-to-be’s co-workers so that costs are kept down and mom doesn’t have to lug bulky boxes home. Guests can then either read a passage from their book and mom has to guess which book it is from, or mom has to guess which book is from which guest. You can also play the Baby-Shower-Poem-PDF (from the Play Party Pin website).
- Messages for baby
Ask each guest to write a message, send a wish or draw a special picture for baby and have the host take a photo of the drawing. Mom can then guess whom each message is from. Put the images into a photo album as a special keepsake for when baby grows up, or take 2 photos of the drawings – one of just the drawing and one of the guest that wrote the message holding the drawing. When the child grows up they will be able to see all the familiar faces with their special messages.
- Stroller Olympics
This is perfect for an outdoor baby shower. You will need a stroller, a doll, some obstacles like traffic cones or boxes and a timer. Each guest has to pick up the doll and strap them into the stroller, follow along the obstacle course without hitting anything and reach the finish line. Penalties are added if any obstacles are hit or the doll (baby) falls out! This game is not for pregnant women and often the expectant mom gets to be the timer and judge. The winner is the guest with the fastest time.
- Set up the nursery / Baby proofing:
Nice idea for parents who have already bought most of the necessary items for baby is to buy baby safety items and have them install them for the parents. This saves the parents time as everything is already taken care of for them. This can include locks for cabinets, plug point protectors, etc. Things like setting up the crib, hanging curtains or painting a wall can also ease the burden of the parents. Another nice idea is to create a coupon book for the parents to cash in later. Ideas include baby sitting for a night, a home cooked meal delivered to their home, a trip to the grocery store, running errands or doing a load of laundry. Many new parents would consider this a very thoughtful gift and really appreciate it later on.
We would love to hear your baby shower stories or see photos of the amazing day – please get in touch with us on Facebook.
