Oh Sis, You're Pregnant! by Shanicia Boswell

Author:Shanicia Boswell
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Mango Media
Published: 2020-01-28T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Party Party Party…Like a Pregnant Rockstar

Everything is worth it. The hard work, the times when you’re tired, the times where you’re a bit sad, in the end, it’s all worth it because it really makes me happy. There’s nothing better than loving what you do.

—Aaliyah

If you have been counting down the days to when you can finally party again, you are almost there, Sis! You have officially made it to your baby shower. A baby shower is a party that celebrates your introduction into motherhood. Some women use baby showers to scout baby names, collect items for the nursery, and to play fun games with their family and friends.

Celebrations around the births of babies are documented as early as the Egyptian days, but it was not until after World War II that mothers began celebrating the birth of their babes before their actual delivery date. The surge of pregnancy in that time—what we now know as the Baby Boom—coupled with a recovering economy, meant moms needed all the help they could possibly get. With baby showers becoming increasingly popular after World War II, the birth of babies is now celebrated all over the world.

In India, baby showers are referred to as “godh bharai,” which means “to fill the lap” signifying the placement of gifts for mom into her lap. In China, baby showers are called “red egg and ginger parties,” and are held on the first or second full moon after the baby is born. Guests are given a hard-boiled egg that has been dyed red as a sign of happiness and life renewal and are presented with pickled ginger which is supposed to restore balance to an exhausted mother’s yin and yang.

Colonialism, as it plays a major role in most African economies, also has a significant influence over how baby showers are held in African culture. Baby showers in South Africa are referred to as “stork parties,” giving in to the belief that babies are given to families by storks. This concept began as European folklore. The theory gained popularity in the nineteenth century because of a story by Hans Christian Anderson that proclaimed that babies were delivered by storks and dropped into a couple’s chimney.

Like in American culture, South African baby showers are thrown as a surprise to mom and are more about fun and games than anything ceremonial. The most attention is given to the cake during a stork party. Stork parties are a big deal, with specialized bakeries and event planners helping to plan the showers.

So how should you proceed with your own baby shower? If this is not your first parenting rodeo, you may be feeling apprehensive about having another baby shower. There is absolutely no rule that says if you had a baby shower for a previous birth that you cannot have another! Baby showers can be a huge help to mothers to boost their overall morale as they become parents, even for the second or third time, but also to ease financial burden in preparing for the birth of their child.

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