Babyshower

 
Yesterday was your baby shower. It was held at Nana Shirley's house in the afternoon. Everything turned out so beautifully! Nana Shirley had help from a lot of ladies who already love you very much, and put so much thought and love into making this shower special. Grandma Joan, Aunty Yen, Aunty Sandra, Great Aunty Jeanette, Aunty Alicia, Aunty Jess, and Great Aunt Sandy all pitched in to help plan the shower. We had 25 ladies in attendance, and a handful of kids. There was a lot of thought and effort put into the details, and I had so much fun going around and discovering it all!

 

The favors were inside this bassinet

Adorable favors with Hershey's Kisses with customized labels on the bottom

One of the labels on the bottom of the kisses in the favors

Vintage clothing used as decoration

Some of these pieces belonged to me and your Nana Shirley, when we were babies

This vase belonged to your Daddy, when he was a baby

These petit fours, made by Aunty Yen, were not only gorgeous -- they were delicious too!

Adorable (and yummy) chocolate duckies that Nana Shirley made

Baby face cupcakes

Me and Daddy

Alicia and Me

Nana Shirley and Me

Jess and Me

Grandma Joan and Me

Cousin Lily

Cousin Kayla

Daddy, Great Grandma Margaret, Shauna, Sabrina, Great Aunt Sandy, Great Aunt Melinda, Sondra

Kristin and Tyler

Great Aunty Jeanette and Great Aunt Dora

We played a number of games at the shower. One involved melted candy bars inside of diapers. Guests were instructed to inspect each diaper and try to guess what kind of candy bar made the "mess" inside the diaper. Pretty gross!

Jess giving instructions about the candy diaper game

Ewww!

We also played a game where guests were invited to make artistic renditions of what they think you'll look like, using old photos of me and Daddy. Then I got to judge which was "the best", and that person got a prize. Thankfully, Daddy showed up right as I was in the middle of trying to choose, so I made him help me decide!

Some of the contenders

Daddy and I trying to decide (and hoping our guests are all wrong!)

We also played gift bingo while Daddy and I opened the gifts. Guests got to fill out the spaces on the cards with various gifts they thought we'd receive. Then as we opened gifts they marked off their cards if they had a match. Whoever got "bingo" first won a prize.

Alicia and Melinda with their bingo cards

We received a lot of really nice, thoughtful and generous gifts from everyone. There were a few gifts that were extra special.

When I opened one of the gifts from Nana Shirley, and began reading the card, I started to cry. Inside the card was a note about how my Great Grandma Nell (a very special and wonderful woman to both Nana and me -- Great Grandma Nell was a very close friend of Great Grandpa Ed and Great Grandma Violets, and became a surrogate Grandma to Nana, and a surrogate Great Grandma to me) had given my mom some special fabric before she passed away, and instructed my mom to make something special with it for my first baby. Nana used vintage sewing patterns that had belonged to Great Grandma Violet to make a gorgeous bunny, and a matching bonnet and bib set. 

Nana Shirley also made a blanket for you using some fabric she found at an estate sale back in September (about a month before you were conceived).

Nana also gave us an old baby bracelet that had been engraved with the names and birth dates of Great Grandma Pat, Nana Shirley, and me, and included a "new" (but still vintage) bracelet to continue the tradition on with you.

We also received a blanket through your Great Grandma Pat, that had been hand crocheted by your Great Great Grandma Alice (she was the mother of Great Grandma Pat's second husband; I also shared a birthday with her) and left with Great Grandma Pat before she passed with instructions to give to me for my first child. Notice that it's made for a girl! How did she know?

Great Grandma Pat also gave us a hand crocheted sweater and blanket that she made.

Grandma Joan made an adorable bonnet for you too. Unfortunately, it was wrapped in tissue paper and accidentally got mixed in with the trash bag. At first, we didn't know where it went, so Daddy and Grandma Joan tried looking all over for it. After the shower, Daddy dug through the trash bag of wrapping paper again, unfolding every single piece of paper inside just to be sure they didn't miss anything. It's a good thing he did, because he found it wrapped inside a piece of crumpled-looking tissue!

Daddy on the phone with Grandma Joan, letting her know we found it!

 Our friend Melinda Gallegos-Fruzzetti also crocheted this cute pink and brown blankie for you, as well as a matching hat.

The blankie has a hole in the center to allow carseat straps to pass through, which I'm poking my fingers through in the picture.

Grandma Joan's friend, Gail Pagan, also sewed a really nice blanket and matching burp cloth. The stitching detail on the pieces was really beautiful, and made it extra special.

While it's not handmade, this little stuffed police car rattle was a gift from Grandma Joan. It's so adorable. Daddy and I are laughing, in the picture, as we realized it has a little siren sound too!

This last one isn't anything sentimental, but it was a special gift for Daddy. The shower hosts put together a "Daddy Diaper Kit" with goggles, tongs, a disposable white suit and rubber gloves. Perfect!