How to Plan a Co-ed or Couples Baby Shower

When a baby is expected, it’s natural to want to shower the expectant mother with baby gifts and good wishes. But what about dad? Often, the husband gets left out of the festivities as the baby shower is a women-only event. Why not throw a co-ed baby shower? That way, everyone gets to share in the good time.

You don’t have to go expensive just because you’re having a co-ed shower. You can still have a cute baby shower theme like duckies if it’s a boy or dolls if it’s a girl. Remember, it’s still an adorable little baby. Just add in a few touches that will make the men feel comfortable. One cute way to do this is to incorporate sports into the theme. Putting mini footballs or soccer balls on the table as part of the centerpiece or having them adorn cookies or the cake in sugar form are also great ideas.

Make the organized parts of the shower loosely planned and optional. If the men don’t want to come in for an hour and a half of gift opening, plan another activity such as playing Wii in the other room or just chatting over cigars on the porch. The less you have strictly planned, the more it will feel like a party and less like a mandatory event. You’ll be remembered for your gracious hostess qualities and everyone will talk about how much fun it was.

There are some ways you can incorporate the men into what is usually a female-only event. One way is to make sure that couples are invited and that there is approximately the same number of male and female guests in attendance. That way the men won’t feel awkward and outnumbered. If the guest list is more balanced, your party will be more of a success.

Send out invitations that clearly state that the men are invited. It could be taken for granted that it’s women only and some people won’t read any subtle fine print. Say it boldly and proudly. An invitation that reads, “Let’s Shower Jen and Arthur with Baby Blessings! Join us for a co-ed shower at….”

Make sure the menu reflects the men’s preferences as well as the women’s. While the girls might enjoy getting together for tea and cucumber sandwiches, the men might prefer grilled steaks and beer. You can still have a non-alcoholic co-ed shower. Just incorporate coffee, sodas, and other beverages that the men might choose. Instead of dainty salads, you might offer appetizers like pigs in a blanket, clams on the half shell or sushi.

Make sure you consider that not all men are going to be interested in the usual baby shower games. Make the games optional. Or include the men specifically in searching for answers to questions or pair them up with a lady at the shower to play a guessing game. Your prizes should be appropriate for either sex.

Bath bubbles are not the right prize for the men. How about gourmet cookies or candies, gourmet sodas or beers, beef jerky from a specialty store or gift certificates to places like Netflix or Brookstone? You could also make T-shirts with iron-on transfers that you print from your computer with funny ‘dad’ sayings. Use your creativity and your best judgment based on your crowd’s personalities.

Check out the following YouTube videos for some funny ideas.....