Nothing is worse than planning a baby shower with awkward silences or those (cringe-worthy) moments where guests don’t know what to do with themselves. Planning out baby shower activities will help you create a great flow to the day, which will help you avoid any pitfalls in your event.
Baby shower activities create structure in the event and provide an anchor to count on to get people talking and enjoying themselves. I’ve included activities such as diaper raffles, hands-on games, low-key games, craft activities, and more in this guide. There is something for any type of baby shower the mama-to-be is hoping for, so let’s dive in.
Diaper Raffle
Planning a diaper raffle is a win-win because it gives your guests something to do when they first walk into the baby shower while setting your mama-to-be up with diapers before the baby arrives.
What is a diaper raffle? Each guest brings a pack of diapers for entry into the raffle. During the event, one lucky ticket holder will win the grand prize.
READ NEXT: HOW TO HOST A DIAPER RAFFLE: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE
Baby Shower Guestbook (Ideas & Alternatives)
One must-have at any baby shower is having a guestbook for people to give their well wishes for mom and baby. You can choose a traditional guestbook for people to sign as they arrive or pick a fun guestbook alternative.
Here are a few of my favorite baby shower guestbook alternatives that are usually a hit.
- Baby’s Wood Initial: Purchase a large, wooden letter for the baby’s first or last name. As guests arrive at the baby shower, have them sign the letter with a message. This can be hung in the nursery after the shower, and will provide memories for years to come.
- Drop Box Guestbook: Dropbox frames are my favorite type of guestbook alternative for baby showers! You can find one to match any baby shower theme, and it can be used as nursery decor as well. Its’ smaller size allowed to be stored away and kept as a keepsake as the baby grows up.
- Fingerprint Canvas: Create a work of art with fingerprint art on a canvas. This is a unique idea and creates a keepsake for the baby. Have each guest stamp their thumbprint on the art piece and sign their name over it.
- Advice Cards: Ask each guest to write advice for the mama-to-be on a provided card. You can keep all the cards in a keepsake box or attach them to a ring.
- Signed baby onesie: Have a white onesie on a table for guests to sign with a fabric marker once they arrive.
- Message in a bottle: I recently saw this at a baby shower, and it was adorable. Have each guest write a note to either mom or the baby and roll it up like a scroll. Place each scroll in a glass bottle.
- Baby quilt: Have a baby quilt ready at the baby shower and have each guest sign their name or write a message on each patch.
- Puzzle Pieces: Have each guest write their name on a blank puzzle piece. You can have the completed puzzle framed for a keepsake.
- Jenga Pieces: Bring a Jenga game to the shower and have each guest write a message on a block. How fun would this be for the baby as they grow up and reads each note while playing the game?
- Polaroid Guestbook: Bring a polaroid camera to the shower and have guests take turns taking pictures throughout the event. Toward the end, have each guest tape pictures into a blank scrapbook with a personal note.
- Banner: Create a banner suitable for the nursery by having each guest write a message on each piece of paper garland. You can create paper garland out of any colored paper or shape to fit your baby shower theme.
- Ultrasound frame: Attach one of the baby’s ultrasounds to the paper inside a shadow picture frame. Have each guest write a note on the paper to be placed back in the frame.
- Book signing: Use a baby or children’s book as a guestbook by having each guest write a message inside the covers.
- Diaper Notes: Open a pack of diapers and have each baby shower guest write a note on the front of one. Mom will have fun reading the notes while going through multiple diaper changes.
Baby Shower Craft Activities
Craft activities are a great alternative if you’re not into traditional baby shower games. Most baby shower craft activities are centered around creating a keepsake for the baby and mom, making it a meaningful activity to host.
Some of these options can double as a baby shower guestbook, but they’re more hands-on than the above alternatives.
- Onesie Painting Station – Onesie painting stations have become more popular at baby showers, and it’s a lot of fun.
- Block Painting – Purchase a set of craft blocks and setup a block painting station at the baby shower. Have each guest paint and decorate a block. They can sign their name or even write a message on it.
- Hair Bow Station – This is a unique idea for a baby girl shower.
- Make a Mobile – Create a beautiful paper baby mobile by cutting out decorative pieces of paper of any shape you would like. You can have guests write a message and decorate each piece of paper to create a beauiful keepsake mobile for the nursery.
- Alphabet Wall: Bring craft letters to the baby shower and have guests paint a letter to attach to baby’s nursery wall.
- Bib Decorating: Like onesie painting stations, bib decorating stations have also become quite popular. Grab some plain bibs for guests to decorate with fabric markers or paint.
- Alphabet Book: Print out an alphabet book each guest can color in or paint that can be given to the baby as a keepsake.
- Candle Making: Create a craft station for guests to make their own candles that they can bring home as a baby shower favor.
Hands-on Baby Shower Games
Baby showers are notorious for hands-on, funny games. One of these baby shower games is a must-do if you have a lively crowd.
- Diaper pong. A twist on the classic college game, diaper pong is always a hit at a baby shower. Guests divide into teams and throw ping pong balls into diapers hung on a diaper pong board. The guest or team with the most points wins.
- Find the Guest: Guests are given Find the Guest game cards. They have to find the guests that match the statements on the cards. They will do this by walking around and talking to different guests and asking them questionsOne. The person that writes down the most names wins.*
- What Am I? Each guest has a card with a baby item written on it attached to their back. Items may include, a pacifier, dirty diaper, baby bottle, breast pump, etc. Guests will not know what’s written on their back, so they will ask other guests a series of yes or no questions to try to figure it out.
- Guess Who? When you send baby shower invitations to guests, ask them to bring a baby photo of themselves to the event. Place the photos around the room or at a table and label each with a number. he pictures around a room with a number attached to each one. Each guest gets a blank list and has to fill out which baby photo belongs to who on the sheet.
- Don’t Drop Baby! Each guest decorates a hardboiled egg with food coloring, paint, etc. Then the fun begins in a race with each guest carrying the egg baby on a spoon. The person to cross the finish line without dropping the egg baby wins!
- Ice Ice Baby: Freeze mini babies in ice cube trays before the shower. When the guests arrive, place one ice cube in their drink. As the event goes on, the ice will begin to melt, so guests will need to pay attention to when their baby is free from the ice cube. When that happens, they need to yell “My Water Broke!” and they’ll get a prize. Be watchful, though, because other guests can peek in your cup and yell “You’re Water Broke!” before you do and claim your prize!
- Diaper Changing Relay Race: Divide your guests into teams and have them line up for the relay race. Each person has to run to the toy baby, change their diaper, and put a onesie on it. When they’re done, the next teammate does the same thing. The first team to have everyone go through the process wins!
- Dirty Diapers: Grab different brands of mini chocolate bars and place them inside of a diaper until they melt. Have each player guess which type of candy bar is melted into the diaper. Sort of gross, but it brings out the laughs.
Low-Key Baby Shower Games
Some crowds prefer more laid back baby shower games, rather than interactive ones they have to participate in fully. If this is the vibe you’re going for, then these simple baby shower games may be perfect for your event.
- Don’t Say Baby: Give each guest five mini clothespins and instruct them not to say the word baby. This is harder said than done at a baby shower. Each time someone catches another player saying “baby” the person has a clothespin removed from their card. The last person standing with a clothespin wins.
- Baby Shower Bingo: Give each guest a baby shower bingo card and play a classic game of Bingo. The first person to get BINGO wins a prize!
- Trivia: Another classic game, there are a few ways to make a fun twist on trivia for a baby shower. You can quiz the crowd on questions about pregnancy, taking care of a baby, or funny questions about the parents-to-be.
- Who Said That? Prior to the event, ask mommy and daddy to mark who is likely to make the statements on the game card. On the day of the baby shower, ask the guests to check which parent was most likely to make the statement. The person who answers the most correctly wins the game.
- Emoji Pictionary: The emoji baby shower game is a crowd-pleaser because it’s a low-key game guests can play at their tables. They guess the correct phrase corresponding to each set of emojis.
- Price is Right: The Price is Right is a classic baby shower game. Before the day of the events, find out the price of a number of baby items like diapers, wipes, bottles, bibs, and more. Each guest will have to take a guess at how much each item costs and write them down on a card.
- Animal Parents: This is such a cute baby shower game. Hand out cards or a simple sheet of paper to each guest. Name the baby animal and have guests write what type of parent animals they correspond with. You can include foal, kid, calf, etc.
- Guess the Famous Parents: Give each guest a piece of paper. Announce a name of a famous child, and the guests have to guess the celebrity parents.
Candy Bar or Treat Table
While different than the other activities listed, creating a candy bar, ice cream sundae bar or a treat table where your guests can bag up what they’d like will give them something to do.
Baby showers can be a fun, memorable time. Find the right baby shower activities that are best suited for your invited guests. This will create a structure to the event and give people a memorable time.
