The Couples' Pregnancy Guide by D'Anthony Ward & Rachel Ward

Author:D'Anthony Ward & Rachel Ward [Ward, D'Anthony & Ward, Rachel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Zeitgeist
Published: 2023-04-04T00:00:00+00:00

In Her Words

We worked together to choose the shower host, location, and timing. We wanted to select someone to host whom we could count on as responsible, organized, and friendly. Choosing one’s own shower host might sound uncustomary, but it worked for us! My sister and D’Anthony’s mother collaborated on our Cleveland shower, and the shower in Connecticut was hosted by my close friend.

The best time for a shower is during the third trimester, if for no other reason than to maximize the cuteness of the bump for photo ops and games. Just don’t veer too close to the due date, as you don’t want to miss your own shower because you went into labor early! You’ll also want time to assess what items from your registry you still need to purchase after the shower.

If your shower isn’t a surprise, you can create an invite list and share with the host. Don’t be shy about inviting people! Even if you know they can’t make it, people like to feel included. Our showers were both coed, which seems to be the norm for the millennial generation and younger, but it’s really a personal decision.

For us, both of our families live in the same city, but we live in a different state, and our friends are spread out across numerous states, as well. For Taj, we had two showers: one in Cleveland, Ohio, for family and childhood friends, and one in Connecticut, where we lived at the time, for friends. Rachel’s coworkers also threw her a shower at work. Even with Aaliyah, who was born during the COVID pandemic, we had two virtual showers: one for family and one for friends.

If you’re having a shower out of town, consider how you’ll get the gifts back home. A few options could include driving if it’s feasible, so you can just pack up the car and go; requesting all gifts be shipped to your home instead of given in person; or shipping all the gifts after the shower—by far the costliest option.

Regardless of whether your shower is in-person or virtual, this is one of those memorable moments in the journey worth capturing. For the pregnant person, prepare in whatever way makes you feel good. If you like, get your hair, makeup, and/or nails done, and find something stylish to wear that accentuates your belly.

After the baby shower, cross-check the gifts you received against your registry list and determine what remaining items you still really need. Take stock of the clothes that were purchased, organizing them by size. Unless you deliver prematurely, you generally won’t need a lot of newborn clothes, since you’re likely not going too many places for the first six weeks other than the doctor’s. We had a week’s worth of onesies and pajamas (about 10–15 onesies and 4–5 jammies should do the trick) and just washed those as needed. In terms of clothes, we made sure to have the bulk of items for 0 to 6 months and didn’t buy anything extra beyond those sizes initially.

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