When a close friend announces she’s pregnant, a wonderful way to honor her and make the baby’s arrival special is to plan a baby shower for her.  Even people who have never had a baby or even been to a baby shower have some idea of what babies are all about.  Keep in mind the traits all babies have in common, and you’ll be able to plan a fantastic shower for your friend.  Here are some tips to get you started:

1. Decide how big or how intimate you want the shower to be.  Does the mom-to-be have lots of friends, relatives, and co-workers?  Or will the shower be a smaller affair with just the closest friends?  Sometimes a first time mom’s shower will be larger, since she needs lots of items, and it’s a big deal to have a first baby.  For subsequent pregnancies, a smaller guest list might be preferable.
2. Send out invitations about one month ahead of time.  It’s sad to have a party that no one can attend because of previous commitments.  You want everyone who is important to the pregnant woman to be able to come, so give plenty of warning.

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It’s easy to be overwhelmed by the thought of creating a cake yourself for a baby shower.  There will be a lot of people there, some of whom you might not know very well.  It’s a special event, heralding the arrival of a brand new person.  You want to honor the mother-to-be, who might be a very close friend or relative of yours.  For all these reasons, you want the cake to be special and noteworthy.  You might think the only option available to you is to hire a professional to create the cake.    However, the truth is that you can create a special cake without any specific baking expertise.  These are the facts that the baker doesn’t want you to find out.

Here’s one simple idea that looks really special.  Bake a white layer cake, either using a mix or your favorite recipe.  Prepare pink strawberry jello if the baby is a girl, or blue raspberry for a boy.  If the sex of the baby is unknown, go ahead and prepare both pink and blue. 

Use the handle of a wooden mixing spoon to poke holes into the freshly baked, unfrosted cake.  Before the jello sets, pour it over the top of the cake, allowing it to run into the holes.  If you’re using both pink and blue, be careful to keep the colors separate.  You’ll need to use a funnel to let pink run into some of the holes and blue into others.  Chill the cake in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to allow the jello to set. 

Then go ahead and frost and decorate the cake.  When the cake is cut, the beautiful ribbons of colorful jello will be displayed.  Your baker will definitely be envious of this one-of-a- kind special cake you’ve created that’s so appropriate for a baby shower. Continue »