When to Send Out Baby Shower Invites

If you’re reading this article and you’re expecting, congratulations! All of us here at Simply Noted send our sincere wishes for a happy, healthy baby. Your life is likely already changing in any number of ways, and on top of all of that, you have your baby shower to look forward to! Whether you’re planning it on your own or you’ve enlisted the help of friends, it’s important to get the timeline for baby shower invitations right. Depending on your friend circles, baby shower invitation etiquette can be very important.

You want to make sure you give people enough time to reply, but you don’t want to send them too early, either. This article will help you know when to send baby shower invitations, as well as help you plan what you'd like them to say. 

Your Baby Shower Invitations Timeline

In order to determine the ideal time for sending out invites it’s useful to back time from your shower.

Baby showers are commonly held somewhere between the sixth or seventh month of pregnancy. This is an ideal time because you'll be exiting your second trimester or you'll be into your third. Many of the headaches associated with the earlier months, like morning sickness, should be over, and you'll be feeling better. 

You’ll be showing fairly dramatically by then, but you won’t be so uncomfortable that you’ll have a hard time enjoying the party. If you wait until later you may not feel so party-ready. After the shower, you’ll have about two months to send out thank you cards before the baby comes, which is a reasonable amount of time. Most importantly, the chances of your water breaking and going into early labor are slim at that point, so the shower is likely to proceed without issue. 

So choose your shower date and then back up about four to six weeks. Let’s say you opt to have your shower at the start of your seventh month. You'd send out each baby shower invite between the middle of your fifth month to the beginning of your sixth.    

Sending out invitations later than that risks your guests making other plans before they know about your shower. Sending them earlier risks people forgetting about your shower before the date arrives. Plus the later you send them, the more confident you’ll be that everything is proceeding properly with your pregnancy. Four to six weeks before your shower is the perfect middle ground. Remember that expecting parents are quite stressed as the big day approaches so don't leave things for the last minute.

What You Might Say in Your Invitations

The possibilities for what you might write in your invitations are nearly limitless, which can be daunting to some. Particularly since you’ll already be planning your shower, a little help on the invitation may be in order. Below you'll find some baby shower invitation wording that could help spark your imagination. Feel free to use these exactly as they're written or change them up however you like. It's certain the mom-to-be (or parents-to-be) will like whatever you write.

Ideas For a Baby Boy Shower

If you know you’re having a boy you may opt to base your design and your message on that fact. Here are a few fun ways of kicking off your baby boy invitation.

• Come out and celebrate because...it’s a boy!  

• Come shower our mother-to-be in blue because a boy is on his way! 

• Little boy blue is on his way. Come and celebrate this special day! 

• We want you all to share in our happiness at the impending arrival of our baby boy! 

• Daddy’s excited for another boy in the house. Come help us welcome him! 

Ideas For a Baby Girl Shower

If it’s a girl you’re having you can opt to take advantage of all of the design possibilities there, too. Here’s a few things you might use in your baby girl invitation.

• It’s not a diamond. It’s not a pearl. It’s even better...it’s a girl! 

• Come shower our mother-to-be in pink because a girl is heading this way! 

• Dance, swing, sway, and twirl. Come help us welcome our baby girl! 

• We’re so excited for you to come share a moment in celebration for our little girl! 

• Our hearts are alight with joy as we welcome a new baby girl! 

Ideas For a Gender Reveal Shower

Gender reveal showers have become very popular in recent years. No one, not even the mommy and daddy to be, know whether they’re welcoming a bouncing baby boy or a beautiful baby girl. At least not until the big moment when the cake is cut and the gender is revealed! Don't forget to include lots of genderless options on your baby registry! You might get everyone excited with invitations like these:

• Will the cake be blue or will it be pink? We have our guess. What do you think? 

• Come help us welcome our brand new baby..? Come and find out! 

• We can’t wait to find out what we’re having and we want you to join us! 

• Snips and snails or sugar and spice? Join us for the big reveal! 

• Is it a boy or a girl? Only the cake knows. Come cut it with us! 

Specifying the Guest List

It’s becoming more common than it was in the past to have men and women attend baby showers. As a result, you might want to specify whether you’re throwing a classic baby shower or one that honors the mother and the father.

Couples parties are more often called “celebrations” instead of “showers” because it sounds more inclusive. Be sure to list both the mother’s and father’s names and point out that couples are welcome. Ladies-only party invitation wording can veer more traditional. Only the mother’s name should be listed on the invitation.  

If you plan to invite only women you can note that in the invitation. But if you have one or two male friends that you would like to attend it’s better to say “no guests please” and specify exactly who is invited with each invitation. 

Let Simply Noted Hand Write Your Invitations For You

Now that you know when to send baby shower invites and you’ve got your messaging and design chosen you might want to include a short, personalized note in each card. Instead of manually handwriting all of them yourself, let Simply Noted and our automated handwriting machines fill out your cards with real ballpoint pens. We might not be able to help you plan baby shower games or manage a gift registry, but we can ensure everyone receives lovely, handwritten physical invitations right on time.