Baby Shower Planning Checklist

If you're responsible for throwing a baby shower and will be the baby shower hostess, it's essential to stay organized and to develop a baby shower planning checklist to keep everything under control. When the day of the shower arrives, the last thing you want to do is run around like crazy and not enjoy all the festitivies. First of all, draft a rough version of your baby shower checklist. Include everything you need to do, buy, set up, make, and delegate to other helpers. Then, categorize all the baby shower to-do's and assign to an individual person, group, or vendor.

Build a timeline for each baby shower planning item and start doing all the dirty work, like buying, assembling, and designing the baby shower details. Plan the event Punchbowl and choose from a beautiful assortment of free baby shower invitations that can be sent via email. Ask friends and family of the mom-to-be for their baby shower ideas. They may know more about what the mom likes, her favorite colors, and any activities that she'll enjoy doing at the event. Remember the following items when planning a baby shower:

• Decide on a menu and drinks way ahead of time and order through a local caterer for easy preparation and set-up.
• Hand out special favors like a silver keepsake frame to all the guests.
• Set up a large gift table for all the guests to place their gifts on. Give the mom-to-be a notepad to write down all her gifts so she can send digital thank-you notes through Punchbowl to all the guests.
• Don't be afraid to ask others for their baby shower advice. It's a hard thing to pull off and any help you can get is worth it!

There is no right or wrong way of how to plan a baby shower. Just go with what the mom-to-be likes and make it a special event with lots of personal touches, like her favorite non-alcoholic drink and a comfortable chair to settle in while everyone is mingling.

After the event is over, you'll definitely be the expert on how to host a baby shower. Everyone will be asking YOU for advice!