Simple Blessings – Baby Shower

 
Sometimes it’s the simple things in life. My sweet cousin Kylie is due with her second baby, a boy, and just before her due date is moving to Hawaii. Thankfully it’s only for a time, but we will miss her. With a large family and friend group here in her home town wanting to celebrate her second bundle of joy and bless their family in this transition, we asked her how we could honor them.
She really didn’t want anything extravagant, but who are we kidding – we love to throw a party, and when she specified she just really wanted “advice & prayer” we found a way to fulfill that request. This lead to a “Simple Blessings” shower. We based the simple decor on the colors she loves and is drawn to for their little boy and chose all the activities around this idea.
   
Guests wrote advice on notecards that were then inserted into an artists notebook we had filled with envelopes.
We wanted a Scripture and prayer element so we devised this awesome way to connect Kylie and her growing family to her family and friends in this new time of transition.
Guests received bookmarks that had a day of the week and prayer on one side and a theme word and Scripture on the other side. These were just printed on colored paper (specific to her theme of grays/blues) and a wee ribbon added to the top. I’m sharing that printable here. We hung them from clothespins we covered in washi tape – don’t you just love that stuff? We also added a magnet to the back. That way guests could use it as a book mark or hang it in plain sight as a reminder to pray with and for Kylie.
The themes, verses, and prayers on each bookmark matched a booklet we created for Kylie. Her’s was printed, mounted on fun paper, and strung together from a cute clasp. Oh and don’t forget some washi tape! You can get that printable here too.
The idea is that on that specific day that is on your bookmark you pray for Kylie and also can use the verse, prayer, and theme to encourage you. As you pray about that topic together there is power and growth that happens.
We just had dessert and coffee together for an hour and closed our time with a devotional. One auntie shared her heart and we read through the Scripture on all of Kylie’s cards so that everyone should see the big picture: love, peace, joy, gentleness, mercy and strength. We just chose the words we believed applied to womanhood, motherhood, and to a time of transition.
We also specifically asked guests to pick gift cards that would bless the family instead of actual gifts. That way the “gifts” were mobile for their move and also meets their needs as they arise. This was such a special theme and way to approach a shower. We kept everything very simple and a couple of us planned and executed together to make it simple for everyone. Check out the party tips below!
Guests also left with sweet sugar cookies, that they could bag up individually,  displaying baby Jax’s name- yum and oh so cute!
Kylie herelf is an artist so choosing a hardbound artist’s notebook with many extra pages was also intentional. We thought that after she read the advice she could fill the envelopes with notes for Jax, and even do some creating in the remaining pages of the book that she could someday give to her sweet boy.
How we will miss you Kylie and those first months of Jax’s life but we are praying, daily, with you and for you.
Party Tips
Everytime I write these I wonder if I’m saying the same things over and over, but they are important…
1. Plan and execute with a friend. Everything is easier in numbers. Pick a theme and color scheme, share a Pinterest board if you need visuals. Then split up the work. This time my cousin had it in her home so she cleaned, set up, made the gray moms, and a beautiful swaddle blanket we used on the table as a runner. I made cookies, the bookmarks for guests, and the booklet for Kylie. Aunties brought desserts and one prepared the devotional.
2. Keep it simple and short. For showers an hour to hour and half is plenty of time to visit, play a simple game or do a simple activity. Mostly guests just want to chat and get caught up anyway. Plus it takes a bit of pressure off the new momma to be.
3. Listen to the guest of honor and be sensitive to their desires. Maybe you have a guest of honor who doesn’t like the limelight or doesn’t want a bunch of unsolicited advice. Take heed. Maybe they do and that’s exactly what you need to keep in mind. What kinds of gifts do they need – be specific with guests. Everyone likes to give and receive what they really need or want, so why not share that info.
4. Do just a few things. You don’t have to do it all for it to be special. Choose thoughtful intentional details and it makes all the difference in the world.
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