Don’t Let COVID-19 Get you Down: Throw a Virtual Baby Shower.

A virtual baby shower is a perfect way to celebrate the impending arrival of a new little one, even if you live far away from all of your friends and family or are practicing social distancing from COVID-19. You can plan everything for your perfect virtual baby shower in advance, send out digital invitations ahead of time and have it catered to your every need. Whether you need ideas on what type of food to serve or want to have the event streamed online so friends and family can watch from anywhere, we’ve got you covered!

Here are some COVID baby shower ideas:

Virtual Baby Showers 101 

Believe it or not, virtual baby showers aren’t a new thing.

Military families have been using them for years. However, because of the increase in COVID-19 related virus outbreaks, many moms are choosing to have their showers on a screen instead of in person. It is much safer to plan and throw a baby shower from afar than to risk being exposed to this awful virus.

What Can I Do During My Party?  

Most virtual baby showers will feature some form of entertainment, such as virtual music, virtual karaoke (for those who need to sing their hearts out), virtual dances, virtual fireworks shows, and playing games. Or, if you’re not too worried about virtual entertainment, why not share stories or virtual photos of the new little one to celebrate their pending arrival? You can share virtual recipes, tips for decorating virtual nurseries, and even virtual gifts!

Now that you have an idea of what a virtual shower is let’s get into the specifics. Follow the steps below to plan your virtual baby shower:

Step 1: Planning Your Virtual Baby Shower.

If you’re planning a virtual baby shower, make sure it’s something that will be funny and lighthearted; virtual showers aren’t as intimate (or messy) as real ones, so they don’t have the same solemnity! The best virtual showers feature virtual gifts and virtual food. You can have virtual games and virtual entertainment to keep everyone engaged, or opt for virtual karaoke if you’re feeling brave!

Online Baby Shower Venues 

There are plenty of options out there for hosting virtual baby showers, so it’s essential to do your research. All of them have one thing in common – live video. And that’s what an online shower is all about, right? You don’t want to hear your guests talking or read their chats; you want to see them!

If you’re still dead-set on having an in-person baby shower, here is a list of our favorite venues in Livingston Parish.

What’s important is that you keep things simple. Remember, your guests will likely range from your tech-savvy nephew to your old granny, so try and pick a site that will work for everyone. 

Be patient! Not everyone will know how to find (let alone use) the following online tools:

Zoom – Zoom has been a popular choice for many users during the pandemic. Not only is it user-friendly, but you can also accommodate up to 100 devices in one virtual room, which means there’s space for your most distant cousins and all of your mom’s friends (along with her third cousin, favorite coworker, and mailman). If having that many people together sounds overwhelming, don’t worry because Zoom lets you create breakout rooms, so each group stays separated from others.

Unlike an in-person baby shower where you have to decorate your house for your guests, Zoom makes it easy. You can decorate the zoom background with the baby’s initial or theme colors and even make it a miniature replica of your actual nursery.

Zoom’s virtual backgrounds make it fun and easy to have a decorated shower online without all of the mess to clean up afterward.

Google Meet – Google’s video conferencing service surpasses Zoom with the ability to host up to 250 participants while also allowing for separate breakout rooms.

Participants can take advantage of free unlimited calls on the Google Meet app as long as they are careful not to exceed a 60-minute call time limit. For those without an account yet and who don’t want one, you must know your limitations before using this valuable resource! The only caveat is that your guests have to have a Gsuite account.

Google Hangouts – While Google Meet is more geared towards the business crowd, hangouts is more about getting your friends together. It’s very user-friendly, and you can host up to 15 guests or call in as a guest from a PC, Mac, or mobile device (tethered phones not supported). This makes it ideal for hosting virtual baby showers with close family and friends. All your guests need to have is a Gmail account.

For a step-by-step guide of the differences between Hangouts and Meets, check out this article.

Skype – Although it seems like this platform has been shoved out of the way by Zoom, it’s still a good option.

You can connect with up to ten friends at a time, and you can easily make an individual video call if that’s more your style. All you need is a Skype account, and the person you want to talk to must have an account as well.

Facebook Messenger Rooms – Facebook Messenger Rooms can be the perfect solution for those of us with more expansive baby showers! With these rooms, you’ll never have to worry about coordinating everyone’s email address or find old messages.

Simply create a room and invite any friends that will attend your shower – no matter where they are in the world! The best part? You don’t need an account on Facebook for this service either.

Discord – For a smaller baby shower with guests who are tech-savvy fans of virtual party games, you can host your celebration on the Discord platform. This platform supports online games such as Codenames (a team-based word guessing game) or Mario Kart (a classic racing game). It can host up to 25 people at a time and allows for the creation of breakout rooms for your virtual baby shower games. 

Discord’s game overlay feature also makes it easy to identify who is speaking even when playing fun full-screen multiplayer games.

Another idea is to create a virtual background and have your guests select it as their Zoom background or profile picture. Then it will look like you’re all in the same room!

Even though you all can’t be together in person, it’s no big deal. What’s important is that you’re able to spend some quality time with your friends and family. 

Step 2: Inviting Guests to Your Virtual Baby Shower.

Now that you have a venue picked out, it’s time to plan your guests! The baby shower will go more smoothly if everyone knows how and when to participate in the virtual shower. 

Personalized Evites are great for this because they allow you to customize your message so that it doesn’t make you sound like an over-emotional, gushing pregnant woman.

Be careful that you’re not too over the top with your invitations, though, or you may be turning people off!

Whether through an email, social media message, or a printed invitation, make sure to invite everyone with a clear set of instructions about how and when they can attend.

Make sure to include the following information on your baby shower invitations.

1) The shower date and time, with instructions about how they can sign in. It’s okay if you have a guest show up five minutes late – they may not know that you’ve already started!

2) What platform will be used for the virtual party. While most people have heard of Skype, Zoom, and Facebook Messenger rooms, some users may be reluctant to use these services until they’ve tried them out and gotten familiar with how they work.

3) The URL of where they can access your baby shower room. If you’re using a service that is not well known, you can always provide a direct URL – just make sure to include instructions if they need to download an app or enter a code!

4) Any instructions about your virtual baby shower games. This information can be placed after the main invitation and preferably towards the bottom.

5) The rules for participation, including any expectations you have regarding behavior or sending gifts and donations to your baby registry! These should also be placed at the end of your message, if possible.

6) A way for guests to contact you if they have any questions. Again, a simple email address will do!

Step 3: Preparing For Your Baby Shower (And The Guests).

While it may seem like baby showers are a recent invention, virtual baby showers have been part of the culture since online chat rooms first became popular in the early 1990s. With enough preparation, your virtual baby shower can be a hit with both you and your guests!

The Virtual Baby Shower comes with some unique advantages. You can invite guests from all over the world to your celebration! But there are also some obstacles, like you might be trying to carry on a conversation with your best friend, but then dad starts talking about his new speaker system and how it is better than anyone else’s in the neighborhood. Or maybe time zones don’t work out so well for that family member across the pond who just wants their voice heard too.

You don’t have to choose between friends and family anymore. You can now organize your guests into groups and either give each group a separate time slot to join the call or use virtual breakout rooms, so you can spend some one-on-one quality time with everyone that makes up part of your life.

Another advantage of online baby showers is that you don’t have to get all dolled up. No one will judge you for wearing yoga pants and looking like a crazy-haired disaster. Because let’s be honest, you probably do on most days anyway!

Step 4: Planning Virtual Baby Shower Games

Here’s where it gets fun. You’ll have to get creative because baby shower games for virtual showers will be a little different than the ones you might have thrown at a real baby shower. But they can still be fun!

You can pick baby shower games like:

• Guess the Baby Food – Taste unlabeled jars of baby food on camera and have your guests guess the flavor based on its color, consistency, and look on your face. The person with the most correct guesses wins!
• Special Delivery – Have guests use a webcam to take photos of everything they’d bring back from the store if they were shopping for you!
• Name the Baby – Have your guests send you their baby photos. At the party, show the images to the group and then have them shout out the names of people they think it looks like. Whoever gets the most names correct wins.
• Don’t Say “Baby” – This is a fun game to set up at the start of the baby shower, and you can play it all the way through. This game is a great way to get the party started and keep it going all night! Every time someone says “baby,” they’ll earn some points. At the end of your celebration, whoever has made the least amount of points will be crowned the Baby Shower Champ or receive one hilarious prize like an empty baby bottle with a gift card inside for new parents!
• Baby Shower Bingo – Bingo is one of those virtual baby shower games that’s always a hit. Find an adorable free baby shower bingo printable online and share it with your party guests, or you can even create a game for the guest of honor to play as they open their gifts at the showers!
• Baby Song Sing-a-long – Play baby-themed songs and have guests sing along to the lyrics.
• Measure Mommy – Have all of your guests guess (say that five times fast) the circumference around the belly of the mom-to-be. The one with the closest guess wins!

Remember to keep it fun. With a bit of creativity, your virtual shower should be a huge success!

Other Online Baby Shower Ideas

Once you’re done playing games, the fun isn’t over! Consider giving a virtual nursery tour so that guests that are still trying to decide what to give you can see what they can give you before your baby arrives.

If you’re having a contest, like the special delivery game mentioned above, you can allow participants to upload photos of the baby shower gifts they get and display them on photo-sharing sites so guests can browse items before making their decision.

Get your co-host or close friend involved! They can be on video or just voice chat.

Planning a virtual baby shower still requires some planning and effort on your part. You’ll need to set up a date, make sure you have the right tools for streaming in place, and then think of fun activities or games that people will enjoy! But when all is said and done, it will be worth all the time and effort you put into the event.

In this digital age, virtual showers aren’t just a great way to be with family and friends on your special day—they’re a fun way to communicate with loved ones who can’t make it.

Reveal your Baby’s Gender

Why not turn your virtual shower into a gender reveal also? You can have various games that focus on the baby’s sex, and at the end of the shower, let everyone in on the secret!

Step 5: The Gifts

Just because you have a virtual shower doesn’t mean that your guests get off easily. They’ll still want to send gifts to the mama to be, and they’ll want to get it from somewhere. While some gifts are not feasible online (especially physical things like baby clothes or stuffed animals), plenty of options are still available!

• Gift Cards – If the guest can’t find baby-related items in their area’s stores, a gift card is always a great option. They’re easy to purchase and can be used virtually anywhere! Most baby stores and department store websites sell gift cards or make them available for order online.
• Sending Gifts – If there’s one thing that we’ve learned in 2020 and 2021, it is that you can get just about anything delivered to you! So if your guest has an idea for a new mommy gift, they may be able to find it online and have it delivered directly to them or the shower location.
• Online Baby Registries – Many baby stores now feature a comprehensive registry site online that allows you to add baby items from other makers or boutiques to your page. This is an excellent way for people who might otherwise have trouble finding the perfect gift since it gives them access to millions of items.

Step 6: Throw Your Baby Shower And Sit Back.

You’ve made it through the hard part! Now you just have to wait for your guests to sign in and do their thing.

Remember, online baby showers aren’t just about you.

They’re about your guests as well. They should feel like they’ve been invited to a real celebration, and that means including them in the conversation.

Nobody likes to be ignored, so remember: your virtual baby shower guests are important too!

Don’t be afraid to tell your guests a little bit about the shower recipient, including their hobbies and interests. Even if you don’t know much, it’s always good to share!

Remember to Thank Them for Visiting

When people visit your virtual baby shower, they’ll want to feel welcome. Make sure you thank them for their gift so that they know it’s appreciated.

Your virtual baby shower can be just as fun and exciting as any in real life without all the hassle or stress that comes with planning one. Unlike a traditional baby shower, you can log in and out at any time and catch up on anything that you’ve missed.

So ditch traditional baby shower plans and throw your virtual one today!

Do you want to know your baby’s gender before your virtual baby shower so that you can announce it to your friends and family online?

Our 3D Ultrasounds are the perfect way for expecting parents to learn their baby’s gender. We offer a Sneak Peek package, which includes an ultrasound and a DVD of the images, as well as our Virtual Baby Shower package, which includes ultrasound, DVD of images, and a digital album with all of the pictures from your session.

You’ll be able to share these sneak peeks with everyone in one place! And if you’re not ready for people on social media or at work to find out about this pregnancy yet – we have packages that allow you to keep it private until after the big reveal. 

Learn about how we keep you protected during COVID-19. Don’t let hurricane season get you down, either! Learn how to stay safe before, during, and after a hurricane in our recent blog post.

With Sneak Peek 3D Ultrasounds, there is no need for guessing games or waiting until your big day! Get started today by booking an appointment online!

Click here now and book your appointment or browse our packages below: