Affordable Baby Shower

We all love to show others that we care about how special they are. Here at The Nurtured Path we have found some ways to give a party that is inexpensive, yet still comes from the heart, after all...what you are really trying to express is how much you care. Adding a few extra details conveys to the guest of honor just how much they are cherished.

Over the years we've been able to collect a few staple items which can be reused and then embellished. This particular shower theme was for a dear friend whom was having a baby girl. We decided to do a nesting theme in honor of the sweet mom to be. Much of what made this table look pretty was simply flowers collected from our garden. If you do not have a garden, ask a friend or neighbor if you can snip some flowers and greenery, they go a long way in adding beauty as well as sentiment.

1.  This bird house has a removable top allowing it to be used as a container to store "Baby Wishes" in.  The bird house was bought at Michael's Craft Supply Store and painted to match our color theme. (using inexpensive craft paints for about $1 for each).
2.  A small birdie was glued in the perch along with some faux twine. (both can be purchased at a craft supply)
3.  With a metallic permanent marker "Baby Wishes" was written across the top of the bird house. It's now ready to hold special notes to the mother and baby to be.

The "Wish Cards" were cut out of plain card stock (4 per page) and then edged with pinking sheers, a hole was punched in each corner and a pink ribbon was tied. The wish wording was done by using inexpensive ABC rubber stamps (purchased at a scrapbook supply store), we used brown ink, however you can use whatever you have available. No need to be precise at the stamping process, it's even cuter when it's not so perfect. Now the cards are ready for guests to write a personal note to the mother and baby for later reading and can even be a treasured keepsake.

A staple we have found to be incredible is a simple cake pedestal. We own a collection, but the one we used here is silver, adds a little fancy flair to the table, even though the theme was fairly casual. Raffia was used to make a bed upon the pedestal, and then we placed the bird house on top of that. We then embellished with snipped flowers and greenery, and then swirled a ribbon around it all.

For party favors we simply purchased small boxes (can be found at any craft store), filled them with chocolate covered almonds wrapped in tissue paper and then tied them with raffia to continue the nesting theme. The tags were made using the ABC stamps. We displayed these on a tiered tray, which gives it a more dramatic presentation. Lastly we added some greenery throughout to tie the look together.

The food was very simple. We did vegetables with hummus and three different tea sandwiches. egg salad, chicken and tuna salad. The desserts were gluten-free, sugar-free cupcakes from Sweetie Cakes Co. See recipes below:

Basic Egg salad Tea Sandwich

• 4 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 tablespoons natural mayonnaise
• bread of your choice (we used Rudi's Organic Spelt bread), for our party we cut off crust to make it look prettier
• mix together and sprinkle with paprika

Basic Tuna Salad Tea Sandwich

• 2 (6 ounce) cans tuna (water packed and drained)
• 1/2 cup natural mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup chopped celery
• mix together and spread on bread of choice

Basic Chicken Salad Tea Sandwich

• 1/2 cup natural mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 cups chopped, cooked chicken meat
• 1/2 cup blanched slivered almonds
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• mix together and spread on bread of choice

Have fun and enjoy!