A Book for Baby
Kristina Nicolai-White, scrapbooking expert and Founder & General Manager of the Kaboose sister site Two Peas in a Bucket, has some great advice for those wanting to create a very special "Baby Book" during the baby shower festivities:

A fun and creative project for a baby shower is to create a "Baby Book" scrapbook for the expecting mother to document the first year of the child's life. This is perfect for a new Mom, who is really busy learning her new baby and new lifestyle. It's a way for everyone to contribute to the future baby’s memory and keepsake collection.

The host should gather all the supplies prior to the event/shower. I would recommend an album with a simple but timeless design—in cloth or leather, stay away from anything too trendy—unless you wish to mark the year of the baby’s birth by choosing one that would represent the trends of the time he/she was born in.

Once you have picked an album, the host should also purchase and provide all the necessary supplies to create the pages within the album. This should include standards and basics, like page protectors, pens, glues, scissors, cardstock paper and any other basic items the host deems necessary. Then for the pages, I would recommend sticking to a theme. This could be a simple baby theme, pink for a girl, or blue for a boy, or elegant ivory, cream and yellows for a classic, non-gender-specific look. There are a lot of products that are geared towards babies, some are cute with animals and other standard baby icons and then there are more sophisticated designs that feature beautiful patterns and calligraphy.

There are a lot of accessory products in the baby theme, from patterned papers, and stickers to 3-dimensional products made with felt, buttons, ribbons, chipboards and other fun embellishments. Archival-safe envelopes can be included to hold future clippings, labels or other miscellaneous memorabilia. There are even digital products that the host can download to their computer and preprint them to papers for the scrapbook.

Remember to think about "the timeless factor" and be sure to purchase and provide products that say "archival safe" on the packaging. Anything that doesn’t say "archival safe" will not last long at all--and in fact will deteriorate and even cause the photos and memorabilia to deteriorate as well. The host should provide a list of pages to be made for the guests to create. There should be at minimum 12 pages, one for every month, with some sort of form that the mother can fill in for monthly details (weight, height, and other data) as well as a monthly photo to be added later.

Other page ideas would be "firsts" (tooth, rolling over, crawling, walking, talking, solid foods). The host may even include an example sketch of how the pages should be put together so that the pages all appear in the same style. She should describe the basic layout, for example: Place holder for the photo on the left and details/journaling on the right. Each guest should sign the back of their created page so the future mother and baby will always remember who created this page just for them.

During the shower, each person can slip away to create the while the festivities are in full swing, or the whole party can do the pages together. It can be fun to gather everyone around one big table, put on some upbeat music and create something all at the same time. Either way, the Baby Book is something that will be cherished for years and years to come.

For a great selection of scrapbooking supplies, check out Two Peas in a Bucket.

Party Favors and Prizes
People don't expect gifts when they go to a shower, but a small memento is a nice addition.

• Homemade or store bought soaps
• Bath salts
• Potpourri sachets
• Lotion
• Homemade cookies, brownies, bread, or other baked goods
• Jellies or jams
• Chocolates
• Bookmarks
• A small potted plant or seeds and a pot for planting
• Stationary or note cards
• Scented candles

Related Features:

• Baby Shower Crafts
• Easy Cookie Decorating
• Real-Mom and Kaboose Editor Blogs
• Party Ideas from Amazing Moms
• More Kaboose Birthday and Party Tips