What do you think of baby showers? - if indeed you've ever heard of them.

I've read the other threads and added my views, which are very similar to those ofImperfect. I felt uncomfortable about the whole idea and very reluctantly agreed to host one for more daughter. It was a very enjoyable afternoon. The guests were friends who organised themselves to bring useful and beautiful gifts, as well as practical items like disposable nappies and all those other essential items.
It was fun, games were organised and everyone joined in. I'm no longer sniffy or judgemental about Baby showers, they're on my growing list of things that have changed and not all for the worse!

There have been two or three threads on this topic in the last few months.You may like to read them through and then add your own comments.

Mixed feelings before I went to one - my DD did not have one, but her cousin did and it was actually a lovely get together. The overt sense of 'come and give a gift' bothers me when I think these same people then end up giving again when the baby arrives, but I guess if you are on a budget there is plenty of scope to buy a relatively modest gift.
At my niece's BS, everyone brought food for the table and we all had fun with 'guess the birth date' - I won! (Simply because I know what the women in our family are like and therefore predicted 2 weeks late hoping I would be wrong!)
The spirit of the occasion was genuinely lovely and no gifts were over the top - it was just really nice to meet up and look forward - and a tonic for a family that have had a lot of loss in recent times.