Thursday, August 24, 2006

A Baby Shower for Heather!

(Blogger Note: This is a LONG post with lots of pictures - You have been warned!)

Finally, I have the time to tell you all about last weekend's trip to Myrtle Beach and the Baby Shower that "We" ("G" Girls and "T" Girls) gave my sister Heather!

The weekend started on Thursday with my youngest sister Cathy, flying into DC from Maine and spending the day with me. We went to work for 1/2 the day and then, due to rain, skipped the planned trip to the National Zoo and went shopping and home to play with Wallace and Grommette (my own personal zoo).

FRIDAY:
Cathy and I loaded up the SUV and headed South! The 7-hour drive was spent talking, laughing, counting "South of the Border" signs and stopping for multiple "rest stop" breaks. We did attempt to snag a "South of the Border" bib for Baby Rowen, but saddly there were none to be had.

BASTARDS! Hehehe....

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On the Road .. . Cathy & Holly

We arrived in Myrtle Beach on Friday afternoon and descended upon Heather and Rich. Heather was not only expecting the two of us, but her childhood girlfriends, Kelin and Sam. It was a housefull of laughter and smiles. Heather had no idea that there were suprises in store for her!

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Kelin

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Sam

SUPRISE #1 - Mystery Guest: Around 1100PM, We told Heather that we were craving "ICE CREAM" and managed to wisk her out of the house and into my car. The five of us (Holly, Heather, Cathy, Kelin and Sam) quickly drove to the Airport, where Heather began asking 20 questions ...Who is coming? Do I know them? Do you know them?

It was our MOM, Carol! Heather was convinced that Carol was not going to be able to make the shower after a recent move and was not going to be able to come to town until after the baby was born. Needless to say, Heather was surprised and so happy!!! It was a great way to end the day!

SATURDAY: Surprise #2 - Your Baby Shower is today!
Saturday morning, we all took a trip to Build-A-Bear where we made 4 stuffed animals for Rowen (ironically none of them bears) and then Carol and I took off to run some "errands".

All along Heather was under the impression that her baby shower was going to be on Sunday. Being a Graphic Designer, part of my gift to Heather was designing the invitations to her shower. In an effort to keep the SURPRISE a secret, I went so far as to send Heather a fake invitation! She had no idea that the shower was Saturday.

The weather even played a part in helping us keep it a secret until the very last moment. I have never been so happy for rain! Less than 30 minutes before the shower, which was being held at the Clubhouse at the top of the street that leads to Heather's home, she spied both my car and Jan "Ts" (Grandma-to-be). When asked why we were there, Cathy quickly replied that "We were worried that it might rain tomorrow and we are looking at alternate sights. Holly and Jan want us to stop by at 1:30 to check things out." Heather bought the reason, hook, line and sinker!

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Fake Invite


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Real Invite

So at 130pm, Heather, Cathy, Kelin and Sam rolled up to the Clubhouse. Heather recognized other cars immediately but at that point, there was no need to worry, the surprise was complete! She walked in and the Baby Shower began!

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A Luau Baby Shower


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The amazing cake with baby photos of Heather and Rich!!


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Gifts for Baby Rowen, Heather and Rich!


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Surprise!


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Heather in her guenuine Hawaian Haku Lei
(it is bad luck to put a "closed lei" on an expecting mother)

All the decorations and the beautiful cake were the fine work of Rich's mom, (soon-to-be-Grandma) Jan and his sisters Hope and Katie. They did a beautiful job! Grandma-To-Be Carol made sure we had plenty of wonderful snacks and little sandwiches to enjoy.

Cathy and I took charge of the shower favors and the games and prizes. What is a party without some games? We had 3 games for guests to play and the winners left with "shower" gifts of their own. (think SPA-types of girly stuff).

Game 1: Guess how big Mommy's Belly is? (Ribbon Game)
Game 2: Baby Food Taste Test - Guest had to taste 5 foods and guess their flavor...
Game 3: Guess how many NERDS were in the Baby Bottle (Heather's favorite cancy) ...

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Heather in Ribbon - such a good sport!

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Baby Food Taste Test

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Sam considering the number of NERDS in the bottle...


We also had a "Craft Corner" where we asked guests to make a foam fish, that we later made into a mobile that will hang in Rowen's bedroom. The fish were a little harder to make than we expected but we ended up with over 15 fish to string when all was said and done!

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Make a fish for Baby Rowen!

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Katie making a fish!

After some games and some snacks, Rich arrived from a break from work and we had them get started on opening all the gifts. They got lots of wonderful stuff and plenty of practical items too including lots of diapers because you can never use too many diapers! Here is a photo hightlight of a few of the gifts they recieved:

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A warm "Winnie-the-Pooh" blankie


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Rowen's first SOCCER onsie (with Heather's Varsity Captain number)


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Great Reading .. Where the Sidewalk Ends


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Rowen's first bank - Noah's Ark style


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A home-made blanket for Rowen from Aunt Pat and Uncle Jim!


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Clothes that will make Rowen the coolest baby on the block!


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Rowen's "Home from the Hospital" outfit - from Aunt-to-Be Cathy!


After opening gift, everybody enjoyed some cake and we round out the party with some gifts that Cathy had put together for everybody. Each guest got a little bag-to-go filled with things that reminded us of Heather. The "shower" bags included a "Pirate Rubby Ducky, a Turtle soap, and a floating Hybiscus flower candle along with a sweet "Thank you note" signed "Love, Baby Rowen"

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A basket of gifts for the Guests

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Rowen's "Thank You" Poem

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Heather and Rich, at the shower!


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Cathy, Holly, Heather and Carol!! The "G" girls!


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Katie, Jan, Heather & Hope - The "T" girls!


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Sam, Heather and Kelin - The "VT" girls!


Post-Baby Shower, we loaded all the gifts in the cars, cleaned the club house and headed back to Heather and Rich's to relax and enjoy the rest of the afternoon and evening. The night was pretty low-key but everybody was tired from the busy day and we all just relaxed and enjoy each other's company.

SUNDAY: On Sunday we had a Cook-Out with the "G" family, the "T" family and a few close friends of Heather and Rich. It was low-key, fun and SUNNY! A great way to spend the day as the new, bigger family!

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Mommy (Heather) & Daddy (Rich) & Rowen (in Utero)
in their tradditional Hawaian Haki Lei and Kukui Nut Lei


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"Grandma-to-Be" Jan

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"Grandma-to-Be" Carol and "Mommy-to-be" Heather

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"Aunt-to-Be" Holly (pleasingly plump at the moment)

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Relaxing after a long weekend!

Sunday night we relaxed some more and dropped Mom off at the airport for the long flight home. Which turned out to be an overnight layover in Dulles (DC region) due to delayed flights! Gotta love flying!

MONDAY: It was time for Cathy and I to pack the car up and head back to VA while Heather headed to the airport to see Kelin and Sam back to New England. Heather and Rich were wonderful hosts for the long weekend and Heather rolled with each surprise with style and grace! Pretty impressive when you consider that she is 35 weeks pregnant with her first baby!

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35 weeks and COUNTING! Go Heather Go!

It was a great weekend and by far the * best* Baby Shower that I have given so far and I have given more than my share. Am I biased because it was one of my baby sisters? Probably ... but wouldn't you be too?

Less than 5 weeks til Baby Rowen's arrival!! We can't wait to have you here!


2 comments:

Dr. Iron TriFeist :) said...

Rowan is one lucky baby. Love the pics. Looks like a fantastic day. Your invitations look so cute.

melbel said...

Oh! I wish I could have been there!!! I don't think I'll ever get over how grown up she is. That's what I get for knowing you for so long. Hindsight. And it makes me feel old. She's still as adorable as ever and I'm so excited she's going to be a mommy!!