The Adventures of Baby Arthur

I want to elaborate a bit on hosting "baby pools". And i'm not talking about swim time, i'm talking about the baby shower game! As you already know, hosting a baby pool is a great way for your friends, family and co-workers to share in the joy of your pregnancy and a new life. Loved ones near and far can all get into the action! A baby pool is a game where each participant guesses what the birthday, gender, length and weight of the expectant child. Whoever's guess is closest wins the game. In this post, i'll quickly summarize on some pointers to make the baby pool a great success and some quick tips on game etiquette.

When I was running the baby pool for my son, everyone had a great time and got into it. Except I received one email from my cousin's friend who basically said: "Don't you have anything better to do than to gamble on the birth of your son?". At first I was confused. First, My son's baby pool did not require a monetary stake. Of course, anyone who did not put money into the pool was not eligible to win any money either! Second, I was not even participating in the pool myself. I was only organizing it so everyone else could have fun.

I concluded that this guy needed to LIGHTEN UP. Come to think of it, i'm not even sure how he even got invited in the first place! There is nothing wrong with hosting a baby pool. It's just a game and it's all for fun! Your loved ones are excited for you and want to participate in the pregnancy. Baby pools are a way to keep them involved! There are rules to be followed of course. The mom and dad to be must not participate in the pool as they have the inside scoop. The baby pool deadline must be enforced as those guessing later would have an unfair advantage. The mom and dad to be must also not give unfair data to anyone in the pool either, i.e. the estimate weight during routine sonograms would certainly provide an unfair advantage! It's just a game, but a game is most fun when it's fair!

Here are some things you should keep in mind when running your baby pool:

• A baby pool is usually a pretty male thing to do. Have the father-to-be organize it, it's a great thing for him to do since mother-to-be is getting most of the attention!


• Neither of the parents-to-be should be participating in the pool nor should they be giving out any unfair information! Information from regular doctor's visits is a definite advantage!


• The guessing period should start several weeks before the baby shower and conclude at the end of the baby shower event. If that timing doesn't make sense for you, the guessing period should end one month before the due date.


• The baby shower itself is the single best place to collect guesses! You should print out a bunch of copies of the guessing form for people to fill out so you can punch the guesses in manually.


• A monetary stake is not needed, but it certainly adds another level of excitement. $5 or $10 per guess is normal but it's really what you feel comfortable with. My son's baby pool did not require any money and a friend of mine gave away a prize to the winner of his son's baby pool.


• The winner of the pool normally gets all the money, but sometimes a percentage of it is given to the parents-to-be as a gift. Either way is fine, though it would be weird for the parents-to-be to take any of the money if they themselves are organizing the pool.

Just always remember that the baby pool is all about having fun! Click here to see my squidoo writeup about baby pools - baby shower game.

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Labels: baby pool, baby shower, baby shower games

So the title says it all. After Liz read my post about Man Showers, she was upset with me. OK, she was PISSED. You can probably guess why. For the record, life is not a prison and Baby Arthur has been a joy like I never could have imagined. I wasn't trying to complain either! I wrote in the spirit and honor of the best show ever, Married With Children.

So Liz, I'm sorry! And in closing, words of wisdom from Al Bundy:

• Envy me. That's my wife. Those are my kids and I sell womens' shoes
• We're closed and, much like my life, the day is over. (MORE HUMOR!)

LET'S ROCK!

Labels: baby shower, guessyourbaby.com

Source:http://www.wrybaby.com/fun_gifts.aspx

by Lincoln

Read more on Man Showers on Squidoo and eHow!

Liz's baby shower was on a sweltering hot 102 degree July afternoon with sickening humidity. It was not a coed shower. While all the fancily dressed ladies were having a lovely time, I was stuck with the unenviable task of hauling the take back to the apartment, alone. The shower was planned at a restaurant on the same block as my apartment. While this initially seemed like a good idea, after about 9 trips back and forth from the restaurant, up the stairs, back down again, all through the 102 degree heat, I could only think one thing: THIS BLOWS.

As the sweat was pouring down my face and drenching my shirt, the baby shower was coming to an end. Upon observing my laborious task, the ladies obviously neither offered to help nor did they even open the door for me (lest they let any of the cool A/C air out). Of course not! All I got were a few pat on the backs (I hope that sweat leaves a smell!!), laughs at my expense, "hey work faster" comments and giggles. UGH!

Of course I appreciated all the gifts we received as well as the efforts of everyone who planned. Liz had a great time and it was a beautiful shower by any measure. But there's no doubt about it: I felt left out. Aside from the Baby Shower, we had been having a steady stream of visitors and well wishers for Liz stop by, many of whom never even bothered to make eye-contact with me.

A few days later I was given the best surprise I could have been given at the time: A Man Shower. These days, the "Man Shower" is becoming popularized for wedding occasions where the groom celebrates opposite of the Bridal Shower. This is foolish in my opinion, does a man really need more then the Bachelor Party? I'd say it's someone's conspiracy to build a market!

One of my best friends ("BFF") had decided that I needed a little attention and planned a night of eating, drinking and some good clean fun. It was a night for good food, catching up with friends and gag gifts; just what a Dad-To-Be needs!

-The Man Shower should be something Dad would enjoy aside from the unadulterated out-of-control, debaucherous guys night out. No strip clubs, but rather a calm night out drinking. Or a poker night? A bbq? Something a man would enjoy. It's not an event to make Dad miss his freedom, because the kid is the real prison sentence, not the wedding (See Followup! Ahem, if you're married that this. Baby Arthur, I'm being facetious so don't cry when you're old enough to read this).

-Under no circumstances should there be any gifts provided for the baby, it's a Man Shower. A nice bottle of scotch or wine. Gag gifts on fatherhood like the awesomely funny book that the above cartoon is from (click on the picture if you want more details). A care package of pain killers perhaps?

-It need not be an all guys event either. Liz was present for my Man Shower. In fact, she was really happy my friends planned something for me.

This experience of having a baby is undoubtedly and rightfully all about the Mom. Let's not kid ourselves guys, she's doing all the work. But it takes two to tango and Dad plays a major role in any child's life.

Dads-to-be, have a "Man Shower", you deserve it!

Labels: baby shower