It's Raining, It's Pouring...

We are experiencing a spring shower here in lovely Kansas today. What better to encourage me to finally post about Kelli's baby shower than being home bound on this rainy, rainy day?

Here goes...



The shower was held at Manzo's Ristorante in Des Plaines. Kelli & Randy knew there was a shower, but did not receive the address to our location until that morning, and knew none of the details ahead of time.

We had a small team of contributors- I took care of the invitations & favors, Aunt Kathy secured the location, and Randy's Mom & sister Liz made the beautiful centerpieces and took care of the cake. Kait, Aunt Kathy, and I scurried around town Saturday finalizing everything and did some final shopping. We spent Saturday evening assembling the favors (I mailed everything ahead of time so that I didn't have to worry about bringing everything onto the plane). Uncle Joe was all about the favor assembly line. All I can say is that we were B-U-S-Y!

Sunday arrived, we met Randy's family at the restaurant, and we began to decorate. Guests started trickling in, hands full of beautiful gifts. Many guests heeded our request of a new children's book in lieu of a greeting card to build Tucker's library- what a fantastic concept! We also had guests self-address a thank you card upon entry, and grab a mini baby clothes pin for the famous baby shower clothes pin game. Miss Miranda was the big winner of that one.

Allow me to set the scene for you:



We enjoyed a wonderful lunch- the highlight was an extraordinary cream of carrot soup. Who would have thought?

In addition to the clothes pin game, we played The Babywed Game, where Kelli and Randy answered parenting-related questions ahead of time, and we saw how many many matches they could get. We also played the left/right game in groups according to table set-up- really fun!



We tried to take lots of pictures. Here are a few of all the sisters- Kelli, Kaitlin, and Randy's brood:



Kelli, Randy, and Baby Tucker MADE OUT when it came to gifts. They received diapers, clothes, books, toys, a swing, a bouncer, activity mats, slings, carriers, blankets, 2 bassinets, a camcorder, a video monitor, a travel system, an extra car seat, and a crib/changing table combo. WOW! One of the highlights, in my opinions- a family friend, Nancy purchased a large laundry basket, and hung outfits on a clothesline, laying it in the basket so the line could be pulled out to display all of the outfits. The line spanned an entire table- adorable!

Many guests took the opportunity to show their allegiance and play around with this families deep-rooted baseball divide- Cubs vs. Sox. In no way did I portray any personal feelings by lining the collage in CUBBIE BLUE. Nope. Not Me!



The shower was a great time and I am so glad I had the opportunity to be a part of the process...



I hope Kelli and Randy enjoyed it equally as much, and I can't wait to tell Tucker all about it when I get to meet him and squeeze his sweet little cheeks. Ooh, I just.can't.WAIT!