Ducky Decorations

Earlier this week Janet expressed the desire to see more of the baby shower decorations from Abigail's shower. So, here are some of what I did to make the theme of an old-fashioned childhood shown throughout the room.

I used my big galvanized tub as a wash basin. I hooked a baby washcloth and baby hooded towel into the handles to keep them in place. I placed two regular-sized rubber ducks in front to reinforce the theme. I also used baby receiving blankets as table scarfs on this table and the refreshment table. In total I used a pack of 5 receiving blankets on the tables. I had planned to give Abigail the towel and washcloth as gifts, but she received so many I thought I would keep them (in case the baby needs a bath at my house.)

I rummaged through the Little Golden Books I collected for David when he was little. I used to check out second-hand stores and found wonderful classics in good shape for just a few cents each. Even though David progressed out of these many years ago, I have kept them for visiting friends with kids. After Stacy and I decided on a duck cake I found this great oversized duck at the local new/used bookstore. It also will be great to keep in the basket I keep in my living room for visiting babies and toddlers.

While in Tennessee I found a Dick and Jane book that I bought for the baby. Once again, another gift I was able to use in the shower decorations. I saw the pirate duck and thought it would be a cute twist on the theme. This also became a gift since when you float it in the bathtub the bottom checks the temperature of the water, making sure it's not too hot for the baby.

My large building block was from my photography days and came in handy to lift the cake up and let it shine as the work of art that it was. You can also see the punch bowl and tub in the background. Also the receiving blankets protect the white table cloth that belongs to the church. Since Abigail didn't receive any receiving blankets I sent several home with her.

You can see the mini ducks floating in my punch bowl. My punch bowl and the unique cups I ordered with it always gets many compliments for their uniqueness. It always looks elegant and expensive since most think it's silver. My secret: my husband and I bought it in Williamsburg shortly after we were married, but it's pewter and not silver. This keeps it from needing constant polishing, in fact I only wash and store and when I use it next all I have to do is wash it out again. The only downside is that it's a softer metal so more care must be taken. But we were able to purchase the punch bowl, without monogram, ladle and 12 cups for less then we would have paid for a silver punch bowl.

For both of the baby showers I threw this summer it was fun to be able to use the gifts as a part of the decorations. The guest of honor and I had fun going around the room to collect her gifts. This also let me adjust to give what the new moms needed, instead of a baby towel I was able to give receiving blankets that had not been given to the new mom.