Whether you’re a friend planning your best girlfriend’s baby shower, or you’re the expectant mother yourself, one of the things you need to do before any other baby shower planning is picking a date.
But when should you have your baby shower? The baby shower date should be far enough into the pregnancy for the the baby bump to be center stage, but not so late that mom is too uncomfortable to enjoy herself.
Before you pick a date, consider these factors:
- Stay out of the danger zone. Early baby showers are ill-advised for the same reason that women wait to announce their pregnancies. Unfortunately, bad things can happen. Wait until at least month 5 to be safe.
- Avoid the danger of early pregnancies. Some babies are pre-mature. Planning a baby shower later in the 8th month is ill-advised in case the baby makes an early arrival. This is also the case if mom has to be bed-ridden in the final weeks of the pregnancy.
- Planning is important. There’s a very real chance that the parents-to-be won’t get all of the items they registered for. If you leave the baby shower to the last minute, they’ll then have to scramble to buy everything else needed for the arrival. An earlier baby shower means they have time to fill in the gaps.
- Avoid times with lots of holidays or vacations. You can’t help when you have your baby, but you can skip having the baby shower around Christmas or spring break. Pick a time when you’re sure everyone can come.
While it varies widely and is generally a case of personal preference, most baby showers occur between the 5th and 8th months.
When’s your baby shower date?
