There's A New Kid On The Block!!

A couple of months ago, my sister-in-law and I got a chance to relive our teenage years by attending the NKOTBSB concert in Orlando.  We had front row, center stage seats-- literally at arm's length from all the performers (including a surprise mini set from Boyz II Men!) -- needless to say it was a very fun girls' night out, and I can unashamedly say it was the most fun concert I've ever been to! (Don't judge... you had to be there!!)  Why am I sharing this?  Because that night, in the middle of a packed arena, I decided that the best way to celebrate my sister-in-law's impending bundle of joy was to do a 

NKOTB inspired baby shower!  

My first thought was to play off the words "New Kids on the Block" and use them to announce the new baby joining the family.  From that point on, what followed was a very fun journey planning a shower that was both 80's pop AND baby appropriate, since anyone can just have an 80's party but this was a different kind of celebration!  Since I knew that this theme was pretty original and there was nothing pre-packaged that could be purchased, I used my limited graphic design skills and came up with a whole theme-- from invitations that looked like concert tickets which asked guests to dress in their best 80's attire, to banners and apparel, to a party where every single element was directly tied in to the title of a New Kids On The Block song! With a greatest hits CD playing in the background, it was a fun day for all!  Below are some of our favorite images from the day, courtesy of my very talented brother-in-law, who was a great help with his lovely wife's shower... enjoy!

Custom banner designed for the CLICK, CLICK, CLICK Photo Booth,
where guests could have their picture taken with the guest of honor

A beautifully done cake to match the graphic design, courtesy of the one and only Frances,
owner of Unique Cakes by Frances

We had the perfect amount of blocks, we used the back of the cake to spell
the baby's last name, since the gender and name are still a secret!

A beautiful detail on the cake-- completely made out of fondant and modeling chocolate!

The drink station may have been named FUNNY FEELING
 but no worries, all drinks were preggo-safe!

Instead of Hanging Tough, we made this the HANGING THOUGHTS wall,
and all the guests got to write notes with their hopes and wishes for the mommy and baby

Kinda hard to see from the table, but all the food went with a song title,
SINGLE (veggie tray of single veggies displayed),
KEEPING MY FINGERS CROSSED (finger sandwiches),
YOU GOT THAT FLAVOR (chips and dips station), and more... 

Since the mommy likes Rice Krispies, we did RK Pops to represent the song POPSICLE...
if I'd had another 5 minutes to set up, I would have straightened out the 2 leaning popsicle sticks
and tied cute ribbon on each stick... but they were a hit nevertheless!

Of course, no Southern shower is complete without a SUMMERTIME Fruit Salad

Using the graphic I designed, I created custom onesies that did triple duty--
they hung on a clothesline as decorations,
 they were intended for use during our STEP BY STEP Diaper Relay GAMES,
 and they are now cute keepsake gifts for my nephew or niece to wear!!

For our IF YOU GO AWAY favors, I made custom cake pops and decorated them in the color scheme
of the party graphic and cake blocks.  The labels on the favors and other assorted glass containers
gave the party a cohesive, personalized look, and they were so easy to make!

A big thank you to my mother-in-law and brother-in-law (sadly, not pictured), and my best friend
Maggie (on the left) for helping me give my beautiful sister-in-law (on the right) a great party!
Doesn't she look AMAZING in her 80's outfit with her cute little baby bump???

Until next time!
Jackie