Having a baby shower is a nice way to help new parents get off on the right foot with all they need. It’s a time-honored way for the parents’ friends and family to show that they can count on their support. For some people, holding a shower for a second baby was not considered proper, as the parents probably already had most of the items they needed. You can now hold a shower for a second baby, if you take certain things into consideration.
You may want to consider having an essentials-only shower, having guests purchase those basic items that every baby needs new, like diapers, bottles, and bath accesories. You might ask the parents to list whatever items they never got or need to replace from the first time around. Another option is to make it a shower for mom instead of a shower for the baby, and ask the guests to bring items that mom will need and appreciate at the end of her pregnancy and shortly after the birth. These items can be both useful and a treat for mom, like extra soft slippers for the long night’s she’ll spend getting in and out of bed.
You might want to make the shower focused on mom, reminding her that she will not be pregnant forever with gifts like wine or her favorite hard liquor, or savory salty snacks she may have had to give up. You might want to arrange for tickets or gift certificates to some special event or treat, like a concert or spa day - but be sure to include babysitting. A practical option is to have a meeting before the party, with the guests and the father-to-be, to draw up a helping hands calendar (using an eraseable board and markers).
These can include cleaning house while mom and baby are in the hospital, taking the older child to school in the morning so mom can sneak in a little extra sleep for the first week, or scheduling a weekend for going to the warehouse club store or making a big grocery run. After being sure to get down all the names and phone numbers of the helpers, present the finished calendar to mom at the shower. Sometimes neither mom nor new baby needs any new items. You can also just have a straight-up party, intimate or with many friends and family, to celebrate the upcoming birth.
As an option, ask guests to bring baby items which you can later donate to a charity or women’s shelter. Another idea for a second-baby shower is to hold a “freezer” party, with guests bringing food that can go in the freezer or else be easily stored. Mom will definitely need and appreciate this help as she approaches her due date and also after the birth. It is important to hold this shower quite close to the due date, of course, and to be sure that the mom has enough freezer or storage space to make it work.
Lastly, it is acceptable to hold a full, as-if-it-were-the-first-baby shower in the case of a “caboose” baby - one who, as the name implies, is being born several years after the last child. In these situations, many parents will have donated or given away even the big-ticket items, or even if they still have them, they might need safety updates.
And remember, even if the baby shower is a small one or doesn’t feature enormous gifts, the whole reason you are there is to simply show the mom that she and her new baby are cared for.
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