[The Jacksons' Journey] Gia's Storybook Baby Shower

[Ericka B. Jackson]

Last Thursday marked 6 months since sweet Gia came home, which means I am at least 7 months overdue on sharing pictures from her special Baby Shower with you! Oops! So let's get to it, shall we? It seems like Spring is the perfect time to have a baby, or to announce a pregnancy (or an adoption!) Maybe this blog will give you some ideas for a special Mommy-to-Be in your life!

Gia Love's Homecoming ~ October 11, 2012

This was my very first baby shower to plan, and I had so much fun! Gia's shower was a Storybook Baby Shower, because at the time we didn't know when she would be coming home. We weren't sure what size clothes, shoes, etc she would need, but we knew books would be a "perfect fit" no matter how many weeks passed before their travel call. Plus, her mommy Malerie is a teacher who LOVES books! So we decided to stock her bookshelves. (This is a great shower idea for any adoptive moms who are in the "waiting" process. You can't go wrong buying books!)

The Invitations

For the invitation, I used a play on words from most Fairy Tales (and the fact that sweet Gia was far, far away in Korea...)

Invitation insert ::

We went with Cherry Blossoms for the invitations and other decor as a tie to Gia's Korean heritage. The invites, envelopes, inserts, stickers (for party favor bags), and place card holders were all created on Vistaprint.com. (They were actually wedding thank you notes that I edited into custom Baby Shower invites!) I love that you can often find matching print items on Vistaprint, you can design and edit them yourself, and they are typically a lot cheaper than any other printing company!

Custom Book Plates

The custom book plates were a little trickier, because they weren't available on Vistaprint. So, I took a screenshot of the cherry blossom branch (I know, I'm so sneaky!) and pulled it into Microsoft Word. Then I created custom book plates with 3 and 1/3 x 4 labels (Avery template #5164). 

Of course, you can always find super cute custom book plates on Etsy!

DIY Name Banner

This little pretty took a lot of work, but I am absolutely in love with the outcome! I read several DIY tutorials for banners, and then picked which techniques would work for my idea. I wanted a cloth banner that would stand up over time, so it could be used for birthday parties or room decor in the future... but I didn't want to have to sew it.  Luckily, I came up with a design that I think turned out really cute!

What do you think? If you're interested in a step-by-step tutorial of how I made this banner, just comment below and I'll consider sharing that in another blog :)

DIY Book Wreath

My co-hostesses tackled this project to decorate the front door, and it looked SO cute! Unfortunately I didn't get a picture the day of the party. But it was a beautiful "storybook" addition to the front door! And the winner of our Korean Trivia game took it home as a door-prize (quite literally!) To make your own DIY Book Wreath, just follow these instructions.

DIY Napkin Flowers

These dainty little flowers were cheap, easy, and beautiful! They really made the party feel more girly and complete, and the best part is, I can use them over and over again! (good thing too, because even though they're easy, it took forever to make as many of them as I wanted!) I used this tutorial, and my end result was...

I love how versatile they are! I used them to decorate the balcony, and to fill vases around the house. You can also hang them on the wall, or tie them to a present!

Adoption Shower Games

I'm not a huge fan of the typical shower games anyway, so the fact that this was an adoption baby shower gave me an excuse to get creative! I chose games that were adoption themed, or that were Korean themed (to focus on Gia's birth culture). I think everyone really enjoyed the change!

Our first game was an "Around the World" matching game, with the word "baby" in different languages. I downloaded it online here, and we raced to see who could get the most correct answers in the least amount of time!

Our second game was a Korean Trivia game that I created. I researched fun Korean facts and made cards with each question (and a multiple choice or T/F answer). Then I made little Korean flags on cardstock. I read each question aloud, and the person who answered correctly first got a flag. When the game was over, the person with the most flags won! I'm inserting my questions and my flag template below, in case you'd like to use this game for your shower! (Just right click to save them!) You could easily create a similar game for another country for your adoption shower!

And now that the party was planned, the games were prepared, and the house was decorated, it was time for the shower to begin! Malerie loves breakfast foods, so we decided on a Brunch shower. As you can see, we had a wonderful morning with several of Malerie's family members and close friends. 

We served Gigi's Cupcakes (yum!), chocolate covered strawberries, fresh fruit, homemade sausage balls, cinnamon rolls, and mini blueberry muffins. We also had some chocolates and pink candies to snack on!

For our drinks we had ice water, sparkling grape juice in the punch bowl, coffee, and an assortment of hot teas.

For my other decorations I used vintage Fairytale Storybooks and lots of classic Little Golden Books. They were such a sweet addition to our tables!

(Above) I just adore the vintage set of Fairy Tales my mom bought when she was in college! 

We had so much fun celebrating Mom-to-Be Malerie and helping her prepare to bring her little girl home! Plus, I think it helped her to have this fun event to look forward to in the midst of waiting to get their travel call. And now, it's extra special when I get to babysit sweet Gia and read her these books!

Malerie and her hostesses (myself and Stephanie Howell). 

Katie Howell was our third hostess but she wasn't able to come that day. We missed you Katie!

We love you so much Malerie! Congratulations again on your sweet baby girl! 

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Posted By Ericka B. Jackson to The Jacksons' Journey at 4/16/2013 04:36:00 PM