When is the Best Time to Have Your Baby Shower

A baby shower is a wonderful way to spend time with your family and close friends and being showered with a host of baby gifts is also pretty good fun. Another great thing about a baby shower is that it is a relatively easy event to plan, although deciding just when you should hold your party can sometimes present problems.

For first time parents holding a baby shower before the birth of the baby makes perfect sense as you probably will not yet have any baby gear and this is something that you are going to require as soon as the baby arrives. However, a shower is also the perfect time for family and friends to see the new bundle of joy and so holding the shower after the baby arrives also makes perfect sense. So, here is some advice which you might find helpful when it comes to making a decision on timing.

One benefit of holding your baby shower after the birth of the baby is that your guests will know the baby's gender, name, and birth statistics. Knowing these details makes it much easier to buy gifts, especially if the gift is going to be something that needs to be engraved. Additionally, holding the event a month or two after the birth gives you a chance to get back to looking your 'best'.

Having a baby shower after the baby's birth also works very well when the child is a second or third child as generally you will have all of the basics to hand and your guests can focus their attention on buying those essential everyday necessities such as diapers and clothing.

However, holding your shower before the new baby is born means that you can be the guest of honor rather than the new child. All eyes will be focused on you and you can be pampered. Also, after looking through your gifts you will still have another month or two to go shopping for the items you still need. Many expectant mothers will of course know the gender of their unborn child and will have already chosen a theme for the nursery so gift giving can still be specific. Planning for your party before the birth also gives you something to look forward to at a time when you may well be simply wishing for your pregnancy to be over.

Deciding just when to hold a baby shower is really something which needs to be done on a case-by-case basis, but you should not delay your decision on when to hold it as nothing can be done by way of planning until you have decided upon a date. If you do decide to hold it before the baby arrives then it is a good idea to schedule it during the seventh or eighth month of pregnancy and, if you decide to hold it after the birth, then it is a good idea to wait at least four to six weeks after delivery to allow you time to bond with your new baby and for the two of you to get used to each other.