For the past several weeks, we had a great time planning a baby shower for my sister-in-law, Cara, and my brother, Chad.  I’ve wanted to share all of the fun ideas we were coming up with, but Cara reads my blog (Hi, Sis!) and I knew it would ruin the surprise.  We held the shower yesterday afternoon, and it was a success! 

Preferring to stay away from the traditional baby blue and pastel colors, we went with a brighter palate of reds, blues, greens, and yellows.  I bought vintage alphabet blocks and wooden toys on ebay.com, and used them to spell words like:  "BABY", "LOVE", "MOMMY", and "DADDY". The blocks created a long, low centerpiece down the middle of our 20-foot table. 

Each guest had their own bouquet of wild flowers in empty baby food jars (we used Earth’s Best Organic Baby Food jars for their great vintage-feel graphic labels!).  Jennifer Rose-Sandy of Salt Harbor Designs did the mini flower arrangements, which also served as take-home party favors.  Weren’t they precious?

The napkins were folded like diapers and pinned with a big yellow safety-pin in the center.  Do you see the little candy pacifiers tied to the top of each menu card?  They were made by our friend Martha (not Stewart…but she’s close) with breath mints, jelly beans and royal icing.  You can make your own by following these online how-to instructions.  At the end of the table, we made a large floral arrangement by dropping a vase down into the cardboard drum that housed the building blocks.  By coincidence, our “vase” had English text on one side and French text on the other.

But a party isn’t a party without food and guests.  Our guests were lots of fun, and many of them proved to talented artists as they drew illustrations (in crayon, of course!) for Carter’s first baby book.  And the food?  We’ll share our menu with you tomorrow…