In Denver I was part of an AWESOME fellowship group that had 9 girls in it. We had baby showers for every baby. Now I’m in North Dakota, and one of the girls; Rebekah, is pregnant and in Seattle. We couldn’t let her have a baby without a “fellowship group” shower, but we had to get a little creative. This is why I came up with the, “Baby Shower in a Box”.
I started out by sending an envelope to each girl that included: instructions, 10 “Diaper Diary” cards for them to fill out, a “Hopes and Prayers for Baby Floyd” card to fill out, a “My Favorite thing to pamper your pregnancy” card, a reminder to send a check towards a Target gift card, and a return envelope!
 It was really fun when the packages started rolling in and I got to see what everyone wrote.
Normally at our Fellowship Group Baby Showers we pass around newborn diapers and write notes to the new mama on the diapers. Instead I sent, “Diaper Diaries” notecards for everyone to write on and then I attached them to the diapers.
We ended up with 80 of them for Rebekah to enjoy while she does midnight diaper changings! Here are some of my favorites!
I lined an orange box with kraft paper and wrapping paper and stuffed in all 80 diapers and the quilt that I made for her baby.
Next up I added everyone’s “favorite things”! Without planning it we ended up with a really good assortment of goodies to pamper Rebekah! She got: Blistex Chapstick, Dark Fudge Kettlecorn, Godiva Salted Caramel Chocolate Bar, A “to-do” list, an itunes gift card, a Starbucks gift card, CJ’s body butter, a huge Hershey bar, Bigelow hand soap, and Mighty Leaf teas. We also included a Target gift card that we all chipped in for.
 My friend Lindsay of Sugar Mama Cakes made these two adorable cupcakes, because what baby shower doesn’t have cupcakes? I packaged them up in two little zip-loc containers and tucked them in the quilt.
We also all wrote our “hopes and prayers for Baby Floyd”, which I attached to the lid of the box.
 I printed out this for Rebekah so she knew what all she was getting. It was so fun because this was a total surprise to her!
 I could BARELY get the lid shut, but when I did I taped it up VERY good!
It was so nice to be able to give something so special to a friend that is so special to us. Now we just have to wait for their little boy to get here!
**3/26/16** It’s been requested that I include the instructions that I sent to the other mamas, here is the e-mail that I sent all of them and included in the envelopes that I mailed to each of them:
Hey Girls!
Since none of us can be with Rebekah to throw her a baby shower, I was thinking we could do a “Baby Shower in a Box” from all of us that we can send to her! I’ve actually put together an envelope for each of you that I mailed out today including the following:
- Rather than writing on diapers, I am mailing you all 10 “diaper notecards”. Write your jokes, notes of encouragement, or other anecdotes on them and mail them to me. I will then attach each note to a newborn diaper and mail a pack of newborn diapers in the box.
- She is going to be decorating her nursery light blue, aqua, and green. I am also mailing a notecard to write “Hopes and Prayers for Baby Floyd” on. Then when you mail them to me I will mount mail it in the “Baby shower in a box”. It will be our way of “praying for the baby” and creating nursery decor for them.
- Rebekah is going to be registering to get a discount on some of the more expensive items that they need to buy this time around. She needs: bottles, nipples, a crib, an infant car seat, a car seat sleeping bag, and a new diaper bag. I was thinking we could all chip in and get her a Target giftcard for whatever she chooses. When you send your notecards you can just include a check for however much you are comfortable with and then I will include the giftcard in our “Baby Shower in a Box”.
- Lastly I was thinking it would be fun to send some of our favorite things to pamper Rebekah! So when you send your envelope back to me, just add in something for her! Maybe a starbucks gift card, a favorite nail polish, a delicious candy, a new lip gloss, or something fun and little to pamper her. Attach the notecard so she knows which of us each item is from!
I know its a quick turnaround, but I am asking all of you to get them mailed back to me by January 15th so that we can get her “Baby Shower in a Box” to her in time!
I am mailing the envelopes to: Lindsey, Megan, Anisa, Rebecca, Stephanie, Lisa, and Jana. In each envelope is a return envelope with my address on it, just pay postage and ship it back! When I send it to her I am going to add in a few cupcakes too! Also this is a surprise that Rebekah knows nothing about! Love you girls!
-Jess
oh my goodness i bet she cried major tears when she got this! my family did this for me for my “bridal shower” and it was a complete surprise, i couldn’t believe everyone’s thoughtfulness and generosity, i LOVED it! so cool jess 🙂
So, I cried reading this…..what a great friend she must be, for you to do that to her…how amazing of a friendship and what an amazing baby shower in a box!!!!
Best. care package. ever. Seriously! What a great friend you are! It just goes to show that distance cannot keep folk from loving each other. My friends are just now starting to have babies so I’ll definitely pin this for future reference. What a great idea!
Warmly,
Lauren
The Thinking Closet
Thanks! Obviously a in-person shower would be more fun, but it’s true, distance will never keep good friends from still loving each other.
Just posted on a New Mommy Survival Kit where we included diaper diaries of our own, inspired by yours. Gave you a shout out too. Here’s the link if you want to check it out: http://www.thinkingcloset.com/2013/04/05/new-mommy-survival-kit/
Thanks, Jess.
Warmly,
Lauren
The Thinking Closet
Since your comment I checked out your blog and I am your newest blog and facebook follower, I love all your great ideas!
Jess
BrightGreenDoor
this really is a brilliant idea!!! I will get my friends to do that for our friend, who justed moved too:O))) THANX for sharing and giving me this lovely idea:O)!!
Absolutely! I’m so glad someone else will benefit from this idea! I am sure she will love it and appreciate your thoughtfulness.
Do you have the files for the printables you used for this shower? If so, I would greatly appreciate you sharing them! Many thanks!
I’m sorry I don’t have them anymore. I remember I used Picasa to make them, and I love using any of the free “KG” fonts. I just might have to share some printables to be used like this soon! Thank you for the reminder and sorry I couldn’t help.
Love the idea! Any luck on getting a copy of the instructions?
Thank you so much. Let me dig into my archives and see if I can fine them! If I can I’ll add them to the post!
I found it! I added it to the bottom of the blog post!
I am planning something for a friend at church. I am not great at party planning social stuff, but I love meaningful activities like this. This idea is awesome for an in-person shower. Thanks so much for sharing! So thoughtful!
This is the best idea, I just threw my sister a baby shower but a lot of family members were unable to attend this is a great way to get the WHOLE family involved, thanks for sharing I’m sending my envelopes out this week!
QUESTION… First of all, AWESOME idea!! I have a good friend who recently found out she’s pregnant with her first baby and virtually ALL of her friends and family are out of state or even country. I’m planning to use your “baby shower in a box idea”. The interest in participating has been awesome!! BUT that means I need to send like 50ish envelopes out in the mail (and some internationally). Any idea what the cheapest way to send out that many large envelopes would be?? I’m kind of clueless when it comes to shipping options. Just hoping not to spend a million dollars on shipping alone. Thanks in advance!!
I’m guessing it might cost you a bunch! otherwise you could always make PDF’s and e-mail them as printables! Our group was small so it wasn’t so bad. Good luck though! It is such a thoughtful thing to do for a friend!