Hi Mama Bears,
Congratulations!!
Whether you are celebrating getting engaged or expecting a new bundle of joy, or even both! Don’t let the world’s climate determine if you have an engagement party or baby shower.
Say yes! Yes to still having some form of celebration for your special announcement(s).
2020 has brought many tragedies but is also bringing tons of positive blessings. I used to be down at how things were, but I have learned how to turn a negative situation into a positive. This year blessed me with not only an engagement to an amazing person but also we are expecting our first baby, a boy.
Read: Engaged & Pregnant blog here
Due to the coronavirus I have been under house arrest ☺ since early March. Had these been normal times I would have never been able to enjoy my pregnancy and being home with my children. I would have been running off to work at 6 a.m., only to pick the children up at 6 p.m. for activities, making dinner, homework, bedtime routine, and to do it all over again.
This time home for all of us has given us a blessing in disguise. I am at peace, calmer, and can enjoy each day without rushing through it.
I won’t lie, I was hesitant to have a baby shower under the current circumstances. I wasn’t really feeling the whole “celebrate online” thing, but then I continued to think about it and found a way that would work for me as well as my loved ones.
My point here is that you too can create your own celebration experience. While you may not be feeling it, your blessings could be just the medicine one of your loved ones needs for a pick-me-upper.
So, the best way to celebrate your quarantine engagement or baby shower:
- Zoom or virtual party:
Host a celebration through Zoom or another virtual platform and invite your guests to mail your gifts in advance and then open them on camera. Spend time catching up with people, play a game or two (trivia games are the best), and thank everyone for their time.
- Drive-by party:
Place a table by the curb to allow for guests to drop off their gifts from a distance. Organize to have thank-you gifts available on the table for them to pick up. Leave hand sanitizer and extra masks on the table. You and your partner can stand from a safe distance to capture photos of your guests, say hello, and even play games (raffle prizes, guessing games, etc.). The best part is you get to decorate your front yard with balloons and other decorations.
If you want to get really festive, you can organize a drive-by parade and the guest with the best decorated car wins a big prize.
- Announce and party later:
You and your partner can record a special video announcing your exciting news. Invite your guests to go to your registry and/or wish list for them to purchase and send you your gifts. Explain the situation and let them know that you will be having a physical celebration at a later date, when appropriate.
- Facebook Live party:
Invite everyone that you would to your physical party over to Facebook Live. Here is where you can get creative and allow your guests to participate and not just watch you open presents.
For expecting moms, you ladies can invite your guests to help you decorate the nursery. Have hubs hold the camera while you talk your guests through your nursery designs, then of course open presents over cake.
For my newly engaged peeps, you and your partner can play a trivia game. Have your guest pick a team (team A could be you and team B would be your partner). Have a third person ask the questions for who knows you better. Let your guests answer the questions and then you all write the answers down after everyone on the team has answered. Then of course, have cake and a toast.
- Amazon Registry and Sip & See:
My fiancé and I opted to go with this option. We did a baby registry on Amazon, super easy by the way, where our friends and family can ship all gifts directly to our home. Once the baby is born, we will organize a Sip & See.
We will keep the physical invites to close family and friends (five to ten people) and then Zoom for everyone else. Over Zoom everyone can see the baby, we will say our thank-yous and possibly play a couple of raffle games (guess the baby’s weight, etc.).
