Their nursery theme is Detroit Tigers, and my SIL asked that the baby shower theme follow along. We Michiganders were happy to oblige.
This is great-grandma and grandma to baby Jackson; we were co-hosts for this event.
This was a cute cake, check it out:
Some simple BBQ pork and chicken, with salads made up the menu.
I was in charge of the centerpieces, which you can almost see in the poorly taken photograph below (you probably wouldn't believe that I was a video major in college)
Piece number 1 is a small glass bowl and white candle (both 4 for $1 at the dollar store) atop a foam baseball "coaster". The foam baseballs I found at Hobby Lobby, 10 in a pack for $2.99 I believe it was?
These were simple cylinder vases from the dollar store filled with peanuts. I wrapped blue streamer paper (left-over from my son's 1st birthday party two years ago!) around the top to give it a pop of color, and used twine to add the bow.
I made banners that I stuck in these peanut vases, but none of my picture from the shower turned out well enough to see them and just now when I looked, I couldn't find them- I'm guessing some of the little girls from the shower gave them a good home.
My MIL had already gotten these orange flowers to match the orange table cloths she picked out. So all I had to do was make them work. I bought shapely vases from the dollar store, filled the bottom with peanuts (more for weight and to hold the flowers than for decoration, but it works) and the blue is the same streamer paper all cut up into shreds.
You can find my inspiration for all of these on my Pinterest board "Party Time". There are always a dozen more ideas I wish I could incorporate in things, but I've learned the best thing is to take a few ideas and run with them. I am first a wife, then a mother, and after those roles are fulfilled do I allot my time for other things. So, if you have an upcoming party or event you're helping plan, here is the advice I follow and therefore offer to you.
1. Establish your budget. Be realistic, and within your means. Speak to your husband first and get his input about how much you can put towards this event. And. never. ever. spend. more. than. your. budget.
2. Get ideas. This is fun, but don't get carried away- remember The Budget. Use this time to find many different ideas. Look at tutorials to see if you can make decorations yourself to save money. Also, try to find items around your house to bring in for decoration. This includes craft supplies as well as items (e.g. don't go buy baseballs for a sports theme without raiding your husbands stash of sports equipment first, you get the idea)
3. Set a timeline. Finalize the party date and work backwards from there. Make sure if you're hand making any items to give yourself plenty of time to do them. Try calling ahead to stores to see if they have items you know you're going to buy to make sure they have enough in stock. My MIL and I went shopping for the Detroit plates and the store only had one package. We tried several stores for more before we found an alternative plate because no one had the ones we originally liked. A phone call could have saved us some leg work (and gas money!) And remember, as moms (if applicable), we have to plan time to do this around our kids' schedules. A friend volunteered to watch my kids so I could efficiently run errands (thank you Denise!). Another day, I waited for my kids' nap time and then crafted like crazy to get the centerpieces finished before they woke up.
4. Have fun. You can see that I am no Martha Stewart, and that is OK. Don't worry about perfection, and don't try to do something you cannot. Keep expectations real and you'll have fun!
Have you put on any parties? I'd love to see photos of what you did!
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