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An Open House Baby Shower
A New Twist on That Special Party for the Mom-to-be
By Renee Roberson
In today's hectic society it's not unusual for a family's weekend to be completely booked months ahead of time. As a result, structures and formats of social events, such as birthday parties and baby showers, are constantly evolving to help accommodate guests who might be attending.
A new trend with baby showers is to hold an "open house" or "drop-in" baby shower where guests have an option of bringing the guest of honor her gifts without being obligated to stay for several hours.
Because an open house baby shower has more of an informal feel than a traditional shower, typical baby shower games and activities aren't usually needed, and most guests probably won't be expecting a large-scale catered event. The expectant mom can open her gifts as people drop by the shower, which may be preferred by guests who don't want to sit through a dozen or more gifts being opened.
Kiley Thiel, a resident of Charlotte, N.C., had an open house baby shower before her baby's birth. Female members of her church held the shower in their church fellowship hall from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. one weekend afternoon. Simple finger foods, cake and punch were served for guests who dropped in during the event.
"We all have lots of things going on during our weekend hours and this is a way to be able to attend a baby shower without feeling obligated to stay for two or three hours," says Thiel. "Thirty minutes at a baby shower can be fit into a busy day much easier than three hours can."
Another advantage to this type of shower is that some of the pressure is taken off both the hostess and guest of honor.
"A pro is that [it] seems like it's a more laid-back atmosphere," says Candice Davis, another mom from Charlotte, N.C. "There's not a ton of attention placed on your shoulders, even though it's your party, and there's not a lot of stress placed on the hostess to come up with activities to be held during the shower."
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