Bridal Shower Guest Etiquette Article

So, Who Should Make It onto the Baby Shower Invite List?

When hosting a baby shower, if it isn’t going to be a surprise, it may be a good idea to let the mom to be helping you to decide who she wants to invite to the event. She may have friends and coworkers that you may not know about, that she would like to include in the festivities. If the baby shower is to be a surprise, then you may have to rely on the expectant grandmother for help in creating the guest list.

In general, the baby shower host is responsible for creating the guest list, since after all; she will be bearing the brunt of the shower costs. But, it is important that the host makes certain she invites people to the shower that the mom would want to be there, since it is her day, and her time to share the joy of her pregnancy with her closest friends and relatives. Even though each guest that gets added to the list will result in extra expense for the host, it is better to add them than have the expectant mom be upset because someone was left out. Going over the list with the mom-to-be or the grandmother can help make sure this doesn’t happen.

There are some people who will pretty much always be included on the list, especially close family and friends. In some cases, the expectant mom may get more than one shower, in which case, it may be okay to stick to close friends and relatives; it really just depends on the situation. For example, if she gets a shower at work, then there is really no need to invite her coworkers, unless they are really close. If the expectant father’s family decides to have a shower for their friends and relatives, then it may be permissible to omit them from the list, again, depending on the situation. It is better to take a chance and invite than not to and have hurt feelings or an upset pregnant lady on your hands!

Another question that may come up is whether or not you should include men in your guest list. At one time, the answer to that was a definitive and resounding no, but that really isn’t the case anymore. The men enjoy getting together just as much as the girls do, but you can pretty much expect them all to congregate together and talk during the event. If you do include them in your guest list, make certain that you don’t do any games or anything that could make the uncomfortable.

If you have someone that will be on the guest list that recently lost a child or miscarried, it may be hard to decide whether or not you should invite them. It really is okay to send them an invitation, and then they can decide whether or not they are able to come. Don’t be surprised if the invitation is declined, but to keep from causing hurt feelings or resentment, the invitation should be sent.