Baby Shower #1 with Family for our Fluffy Space Princess

A few weeks after our gender reveal with our family, my sister Alexa sent me a Viber message while Mike and I were strolling around the mall. She asked me if I was going to have a baby shower, to which I replied, “It depends. If someone throws me one!” She then asked, “Can I throw you a baby shower?” How sweet!!! I’m glad she asked because if no one offered, Mike and I would probably not have organized one ourselves!

Alexa and I were chatting for a while as Mike and I were browsing through the baby section of the department store, when he pointed at someone and said, “Wait… is that Alexa?”

True enough, I saw my mom and Alexa, carrying pink and white gift-wrapped boxes, which were obviously gifts for us! They froze when they saw us! Hahaha! Apparently, they’ve already started shopping for the baby shower. Excited auntie and grandma!

Alexa did an amazing job at spearheading the baby shower! I thought it was just going to be like one of our usual family get-togethers where we casually hang out at my aunt Cynthia’s house and pig out on home-cooked meals while wearing house clothes. But when we arrived at my aunt’s place, we were so pleased and surprised to see the very pretty and pink set-up, all for us and our Fluffy Space Princess!

The night before the shower, Alexa attended the Star Magic Ball but went home early because she had to set up my aunt’s garage early the next day. I heard that she started dressing up the place as early as 8:00 in the morning, with the help of our uncle Ed. Aww! Talk about labor of love!

Here are some snippets from our intimate and extremely fun shower with my family!

Alexa made the baby shower even sweeter with this lovely dessert buffet! Everyone brought home something from this spread.

A few days before the shower, Alexa asked me who my favorite Adventure Time princess is, and I said I like Princess Bubblegum and Lumpy Space Princess. I had no idea that she was going to have a cake made for us! Look at this adorable Adventure Time cake!!! Nobody wanted to touch it because it was too darn cute! (In case you’re wondering, Mike and I DID eat it, and it was chocolaty inside, but the fondant tasted a little bubblegum-y! Yum!)

My love for pink was evident in these decors! That drawing of a baby? That’s Alexa’s own artwork! Cuteness overload!

The baby shower was a simple and intimate family-only affair, and we liked it that way instead of having a big and grand party. This way, we got to spend quality time with each of them and really just appreciate their efforts in making this an event to remember. It was also pretty cool that they dressed up in either pink or white to be consistent with the theme, as Alexa requested.

My family’s presence at the baby shower really made us feel cared for and special, and that was good enough for us, but they even went out of their way to get gifts for our baby girl!

It was raining gifts at our shower! We didn’t actually have a registry, so we just made a list of things we want and need, and let our family surprise us with their selections. We loved all the presents, so let me list down the gifts we received. (Expectant moms and dads, you might find this useful!)

Cloth Diapers – An alternative to disposable diapers, cloth diapers are washable and reusable diapers, making them more earth-friendly. In the long run, using and re-using cloth diapers instead of purchasing too many disposable diapers will save us a lot of money! Oh, and did I mention that they come in really cute prints? They’re so cute, in fact, that I’m starting to get addicted to them!

Baby bath tub – We’re excited to bathe our baby in this one! It looks so comfy that I wish I was a little person so I could fit in it! It also has a slanted ‘stopper’ to help keep baby in place.

Bathing support net – This will make it easier for us to bathe baby. As the name suggests, it helps support the baby during bath time so she doesn’t slide. We also like the pink duck design!

Disposable diapers – Even though I love the look and concept of disposable diapers, we don’t want to use them at night when baby is sleeping because we need to change it ASAP (or at least within 2 hours) if it gets wet or soiled. That’s fine during the day, but that would be a hassle during night time! Disposable diapers are better to use during baby’s sleeping time at night, and also for going out. And frankly, though it’s not as eco-friendly as cloth diapers, it’s more convenient because we don’t have to wash it!

Nursing dress – A dress with easy boob access will make it so much easier for me to breastfeed. This one is not only easy to remove and put on, but the material is comfortable as well.

Baby socks – These will help keep baby’s feet warm. Shoes are useless at this point because babies can’t even walk yet! But baby socks will protect those tiny tootsies.

Tie-side shirts – Thank God for shirts that can be worn on babies easily! They’re so fragile, so shirts that don’t require you to fit the baby’s head through a hole are great!

Uniqlo mesh shirts – Mike and I love Uniqlo! Their baby clothes are just as comfortable and functional as the adult clothes. These mesh shirts are light and breathable, perfect for the scorching Philippine weather.

Receiving blanket, mittens, and bib set – We’ll use the receiving blanket for the baby as soon as she is delivered, but after that, this can also be used to protect her, especially when we have to bring her out for check-ups. Mittens are also good for protecting her hands, especially since her nails will be long. The mittens will prevent them from scratching her face. As for the bib, this will be useful in wiping her drool.

Rubber changing mat – To prevent the bed from getting wet or dirty when we have to change baby’s diapers.

More disposable diapers (from different brands and in different sizes) – This is one thing that my mom friends keep telling me: “You can never have enough diapers!” Babies go through 15-20 diapers per day! Crazy how such a tiny tot can produce that much wee and poop! It’s best to get diapers from different brands just in case the baby is allergic to a particular brand or kind. It’s also handy to have diapers in different sizes because you never know when the baby will outgrow her current diaper size. For our baby shower, we got one in newborn, small, and medium sizes.

Bebe Chic diaper bag – I specifically requested for a diaper bag that’s “lightweight and not too feminine and kiddie.” Mike will have to help me carry the diaper bag sometimes, and I don’t think he’ll be thrilled to hold it if it’s in Barbie pink with photos of unicorns and flowers on it. I also wanted a bag that doesn’t scream ‘diaper bag!!!’ if you know what I mean. I still wanted it to look stylish and not too cartoon-y. This bag is perfect! The design isn’t too girly, it has a lot of pockets, it’s easy to clean, and it’s not bulky. It even comes with a free changing mat! I think I want another one for my laptop!

Picolo Four Seasons Hipseat Carrier – I read that babywearing has a lot of benefits, both for the baby and the mom/dad (go Google those benefits!), so I’m really happy that we got this hipseat carrier! This carrier will allow us to carry or ‘wear’ our baby while freeing our hands for other errands. It also lets us carry the baby in three different ways: inward-facing, outward-facing, and at the back (though we’re not really too keen on carrying her like a backpack.) With a hipseat carrier, who needs a big and hulking stroller?

Electric steam sterilizer – No need to manually boil bottles, cups, pacifiers, or even small toys anymore, thanks to this very handy sterilizer! I’m really paranoid about germs and small insects coming in contact with my baby’s things, (actually, I’m already paranoid now with our utensils, that I have to re-wash them before using them!) so I’m foreseeing that I will be using this sterilizer a lot!

Comforter set – I love this comforter set, which comes with a comforter, a pillow, and two bolsters! But what we really like about it is the space design. Mike and I had a space-themed wedding and we refer to our daughter as our Fluffy Space Princess, so this universe design is perfect! NOTE: We won’t be putting the pillows in the crib next to the baby when she’s sleeping, as these could cause suffocation, but we will be using them for other times and when we (Mike and I) are awake and watching over her.

Playgro 3-in-1 Safari Super Gym – Once the baby can already appreciate and discern colors, she is going to enjoy this! It’s supposed to be good in developing her fine motor skills, gross motor skills, and cognitive skills. It also comes with a detachable mobile that you can attach on the crib or on the gym mat. Great! Something to distract the little one with!

Lechon – To celebrate the baby’s upcoming arrival. (No celebration is complete without lechon, right?)

Pack & Play – Haha! Just kidding! The previous photo isn’t a photo of a box of lechon. Nor is it a missile from North Korea. This is actually a pack & play, which is basically a crib that you can literally pack up (it’s foldable) and put inside a bag, making it perfect for small spaces and if you want to bring it with you for traveling. It can also be used as a newborn crib, then later on as a playpen. The next photo will show you what it looks like when assembled. However, we had to exchange this for other items because Mike is not a huge fan of hot pink! Haha!

Here are the things we exchanged the pack & play for:

Bloom Muslin blankets – Muslin blankets can be used as a nursing cover, burp cloth, stroller cover, swaddle, and changing table cover. So handy!

Gauze and bird’s eye diapers – The traditional cloth diapers, or as we Filipinos call it, the ‘old school lampin.’ Babies from my generation wore this! Now, these versatile diapers can also be used as a burp cloth, a cloth to wipe and clean the nappy area and the face, as a cloth diaper insert, and more. When the baby becomes a toddler, I can also use this to wipe the sweat off her back.

Cloth diapers and cloth diaper inserts – What did I say about getting addicted to this?

Breast milk pots – One day, I won’t be able to breastfeed directly because I’ll have to go back to work (wahhh!) so Mike has to do the feeding… not with his teat, of course (I wish!), but using breast milk cups. These are recommended over bottles, as ‘nipple confusion’ may occur if the baby is fed using a bottle. If she does get nipple confusion, she might have trouble latching later on.

Washable breast pads – This will help control the leaking of breast milk. Washable breast pads are also more economical than disposable ones.

Stuffed toy – This one’s for me! I got a cute little baby seal stuffed toy just because I love baby seals. Can you believe this child is having a child?!

Look at all those gifts! And this is just Baby Shower #1! Mike and I are just SO thankful for all these blessings!

This baby shower made one thing crystal clear to us: we are loved, and our baby is loved (even if she’s not even born yet)! How incredibly fortunate are we that we have people like my family who put so much effort into making the expected coming of our baby so joyful and special?

I’ve already thanked the people I need to thank in my Facebook and Instagram posts, but I want to thank them again here just because they have done so much for us and we really, really appreciate them:

My sister, Alexa, who mounted this monumental baby shower for us and for her very first niece. She may only be 17 and may not know much yet about babies and parenting, but she sure knows how to make us feel loved. Despite her very hectic schedule, she found time to throw us a pretty party, with darling little details that she deliberately chose and planned.

My mom, who helped Alexa in executing everything. She also got us so many great gifts, which we are so happy with, because we won’t need to get them ourselves anymore. We really felt her care for us and the baby through her kind gestures.

My family, whose presence at our baby shower meant the world to us. They made the party more fun and unforgettable, for sure!  Thanks to them, we had delicious and overflowing food, lots of laughter, and heaps of thoughtful gifts.

And like I said in my social media posts, I really do have the best family in the world, and our Baby is so incredibly lucky to belong to this family!

Mike and I would also like to acknowledge the following:

* Desserts are from Alexa’s friend Elaine
* Balloons and decors are from Standee Crafty
* Cake is by Shake & Bake

Is there a greater word than ‘grateful’? Because that is how we feel after this baby shower!

Soon, we’ll have Baby Shower #2 care of our friends! Baby Smith is one lucky baby!