Baby, Baby: 2 Peas in a Pod Baby Shower

My wonderful mother-in-law threw us a beautiful baby shower this month, and I had promised in a few bumpdates that I would share some pictures and stories here :-)

Photo by Katie Hampton

The theme was "2 Peas in a Pod" and I think it turned out adorably!  We used invitations from PaperHouseDesigns on Etsy, and also snagged some similar instant-download clip art to use on name tags and games.

PROPERTY OF THE DESIGNER, PAPER HOUSE DESIGNS!

Our cake was from The Cakery in Dayton, Ohio... if you live ANYwhere in the vicinity, you NEED to try their buttercream.  Like, tonight.  

We played fairly traditional shower games... The Price is Right, word scramble, Pass the Flowerpot (where my MIL read a story with lots of "left" and "right/Wright" sprinkled throughout, and people had to pass the flowerpot in the correct direction whenever they heard one of those words), the clothespin/don't say "baby" game, and the yarn-around-Momma's-belly game.  My favorite ended up being the yarn-around-the-belly game... we laughed SO MUCH!  Not ONE SINGLE PERSON underestimated how big I was... one person got within an inch (amazing!), most were within 6-8 inches over, and one person cut a piece of yarn I could wrap around myself twice and still tie a bow with :-)  I kept that one to see how close they are by delivery ;-)  So I guess the moral of that game is that I'm smaller than I look!

Ethan's (our) Granny checking her piece of yarn against my belly. Photo by his (our) aunt Lori Feltner.

Two of my aunts and my  Grandma passing the flower :-)  Photo by Lori Feltner

The centerpieces doubled as game prizes - happy spring tulips, while we were all still sick of cold and winter.  It was one of our first warmish days, and they really made it feel like spring may come after all!

I took this one... it might be my favorite picture I've ever taken, lol.  I was playing with my new DSLR before the shower, still trying to learn the ropes. :-)

The food was delicious, and not too theme-y (because, ew, peas).  Sandwiches, chicken tenders, mac-and-cheese (my faaaaave!), potato salad, and lots of munchies :-)

Some of the guests, not quite all :-)  Photo by Lori Feltner

 And the best part of any party... the guests :-)  Since this is the only shower I knew I was having (the other one was a COMPLETE surprise!), the guest list was a mix of people from all kinds of parts of our life.  Childhood friends, friends I made as an adult, my family, Ethan's family... and the mix was perfect and seemed to really enjoy each other!  I also got to introduce my grandma and aunts, a close-friend-who's-like-family, and my incredibly amazing mentor to my in-laws, which was fun after all the stories I've told about them :-) I had so much fun visiting with and being loved on by all of these people who've meant so much to us over the years... lots of them have been praying for these babies since long before they were conceived, and it felt very cool to hang out with them with my big pregnant belly. (But, seriously, not THAT big.) ;-)

Best dang party-planning committee ever, and me :-) Photo by Lori Feltner.  I think.  Maybe Katie Hampton.

Ethan and me with a really clever gift from our Aunt Lori :-)  She has all sorts of baby things and some "my aunt is awesome"-type bibs and onesies hanging from these umbrellas... 'cause it's a shower... :-)  Again, either Lori Feltner or Katie Hampton...