This past weekend I threw my best friend a baby shower. It was a dream come true—both my bestie expecting her first little one and my first time hosting a special occasion in our home. I’ve dreamed and prayed for a house to invite others into and create sweet memories in for as long as I can remember, and this was a true answered prayer (the dream life is happening now!). 

As I reflect on the weekend, I’ve been jotting down my learnings from hosting my first shower + bigger party in our house. I don’t want to forget these before my next shindig and thought you might enjoy them, too. 

What would you add to the list? What do you consider when inviting larger groups into your home? Drop your ideas in the comments below!

Divide and Conquer: Lean on Your Co-Host

Having a great co-host makes every single part of the process so. much. better. Early on, my bestie’s sister-in-law and I decided we would divide and conquer responsibilities. Since the shower was at my house, I handled decor and setup (flowers, signage, balloons, platters/dishes, guest book station, etc.). She brought and prepped all the food which was a HUGE lift—that part of the puzzle is usually more stressful to me than fun, so I was grateful she offered to tackle those details. Our responsibilities were clear from the beginning, we weren’t stepping on each others’ toes, and we weren’t expecting the other person to do more/less. Highly recommend planning and executing this way if you’re lucky enough to have a co-host. 

Do As Much As You Can, As Soon As You Can

There is no reason to leave anything to the last minute. The earlier prep happens, the less stressed we will be (and the more joyful it all is). I prepped some things in advance (the guest book station, welcome sign, plastic champagne glasses with bows). But I did wait too long on the balloons… I was blowing them up two hours before the shower. Why?? (In my defense, it was December and we had holiday events the three nights before the shower…). And read on to hear about the welcome sign / butcher knife debacle… LOL.

People Don’t Eat As Much As You Think

When serving snacks and appetizers, I’ve learned that women typically don’t eat a ton at functions like this. Like I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been known to lay out thirteen platters of snacks for four people, and shocker, there’s wayyyy too much leftover. For the shower, we served one platter of pimento and cucumber sandwiches, one charcuterie board, some nuts and bread, and petit fours. It was the perfect spread. 

The Drink Situation That Served Everyone

We opted for a “Beary Good Mimosa Bar” (the shower theme was “We Can Bearly Wait for Baby Wilson”). What was nice about this: everyone could have a fun champagne glass (vessels matter!), they could choose their own flavor (orange, cranberry, grapefruit), and they could select what kind of bubbles they wanted (sparkling water, champagne, prosecco, or non-alcoholic bubbles). If someone wanted a true mimosa, they could have one, but this also provided options for those (including the mom-to-be!) who didn’t want to drink. Win, win.

Note to Self: Stay In the Night Before (if possible)

This may not be possible (in my case, it wasn’t), but in an ideal situation, I would be home the night before the event to preserve energy, work on any final touches, and get good sleep before the party. Since it was December, we were at a Christmas party for Mitch’s work the night before, which we wouldn’t have missed. I don’t regret going at all (I love being a supportive wife!), but in an ideal world I would reserve the night before a party like this to work on final details in my sweatpants with a cup of decaf. 

Don’t End Up on the Floor with a Butcher Knife…

I designed and ordered a welcome sign to put outside our front door, thinking I was getting a sturdy foam board that could stand up on an easel. In reality, a thin poster arrived rolled up on my doorstep. Gah! I was beyond stressed about how to resolve this—I didn’t have enough time to order a proper sign and didn’t want to pay for another—so I avoided facing this kerfuffle until the last possible moment… literally. Ten minutes before the first guest arrived, I found myself on my knees cutting a foam board with a butcher knife in our living room. I taped the floppy poster onto it and called it a day. This was so unideal. And very, very stressful. It all worked out (my heart rate eventually came down), but in the future I would 100000% triple check the material of the sign before ordering. Oh, and also not leave fixing any hiccups until the eleventh hour. But you live and you learn!

Order Custom Flowers in Advance

The invitation we sent had blue hydrangeas worked into the design, so we knew we wanted that specific color and type of flower at the shower. Instead of leaving it up to chance, I called Central Market ahead of time to place a custom order. I highly recommend this—it took so much stress off my plate knowing I could pick up the correct quantity and color on my own timing.

The Specific Things that Made Hosting a Breeze

Some of my favorite details from the shower were the blue ribbons on these champagne glasses (perfect for hosting—elevated and classy with the ease and price of plastic), the Rifle Paper Co. guest book, and the assortment of platters and serving tools we used. I put together a full list of what we used here so you can look for yourself. 🙂

Call On Your Village: Don’t Be Afraid to Borrow Stuff

I don’t know if it’s just a me-thing, but there can be a temptation to try to do everything myself. To muscle through all the details on my own. In this case, I knew my capacity was limited with work and that I would need help, so I called on my people. I borrowed a beautiful champagne bucket from my friend Sophie after seeing it at her Friendsgiving party (similar here), plus a few extra glass pitchers from my mother-in-law to round out our mimosa bar. Doing it all ourselves is boring. Asking for help is the new cool. 

Don’t Stress About the Extras

There are countless games, favors, and decor options to consider when hosting any kind of shower like this. In my experience, they aren’t really needed. Yes, I love a good theme and detail. But also… the things we remember from events like this aren’t a little teddy bear in the corner or the extra activity. The chatting, laughter, and connection shared when celebrating the woman of honor mean the most. We didn’t have a ton of “extras” at our shower, and they weren’t missed. If you need permission to scale things back or let go of Pinterest expectations, consider this it.

Post Scripts 

— Everything we used (and loved) for the shower linked here. 

— Still need some gift ideas? Here are some personal items for the thoughtful, creative friend; much-appreciated classics for the wellness junkie; top picks for the fashionista; and more here!

— I’m always going back to these tips for welcoming others into our homes.

— This book was on my wishlist—great for anyone who loves homemaking and/or organizing.

— Speaking of wish lists, you can never go wrong with personalized stationery (or even just beautiful notecards or journals) from Papier. I love their stuff so much! Also a great hostess gift.

— A lil’ 2025 year in review: blog edition.