I have an etiquette question for all of you. An acquaintance of mine recently received a baby shower invitation for a friend, complete with link to a registry. Her qualms with this? The pregnant friend had a baby shower three years ago for her first child.
She and I were both under the impression that a person should only have a baby shower for their first child. Of course, there are exceptions, such as:
- The second child is being born 10 years after the first
- The woman is pregnant with twins and suddenly needs two of everything
Now, we came up with a few other exceptions, and of course, a shower that was strictly “no gifts” or “gifts in the form of donations to charity (perhaps even a baby related charity)” would always be acceptable. I went to a shower where the “gift” request was that everyone bring their favorite easy, family-friendly recipe, which was also a lot of fun and turned into a huge recipe exchange (“Oh, that looks good! And your kids eat it? Let me copy that down.”).
There’s nothing wrong with throwing a party to celebrate a baby on the way. But a second shower, with a second request for gifts seems a bit much. I know a lot of women give away their baby items after their child no longer uses them, but is this an excuse to hold a second shower and ask for gifts? Especially when you can get so much free baby stuff.
What do you think? It’s not that I’m stingy, and I often buy gifts for good friends when babies arrive, even if it is a second or third child. But the idea of holding a second shower a few years after the first (and inviting the same people) rubs me the wrong way.
