FAT FREE Bridal and Baby Showers!

Good morning Brides, Moms, and hostesses-to-be!!
I have had the honor of hosting a few beautiful Baby and Bridal Showers in the last decade (I'm 35 now...everyone around me is marrying and laboring! )
And some of my favorite memories regarding showers happen to be good for the figure! And, since this is primarily a women's arena, we care!

During a June shower in 2005, I hosted a summery shower in my backyard. My co-host and I moved a pretty spare couch  into the yard and tied theme-colored ribbons to our big ficus tree. EASY and inexpensive decor from Big Lots or the Second Hand Store....(which also often offers bags of used bridal tulle!)
We had made batches of fat free pistachio and chocolate puddings, used antique ice cream dishes, and topped each with a dollop of light whipped cream and sprinkles. My friend's upcoming wedding was Aqua and Brown, so the individual desserts matched perfectly! Guests went home without having eaten tons of unnecessary summer calories. http://brands.kraftfoods.com/jello/products/pudding/

Another guilt-less pleasure is JEWELRY! I made beaded and chain jewelry for game winners, and you can probably find crafty talent with one of your invited guests, too! Whether you provide party favors or prizes, homemade sentimental creations succeed every time!! See www.Goldierocksjewelry.com

Any more fat-free suggestions are welcome!
Cheers!
Anna Warner for
Registry Bingo

Co-hosting AND Pot-lucking Showers...what to do...

I've got two really special baby showers coming up, my cousin's having a fourth baby girl, and my new sister-in-law is having my brother's baby!! But, I have a couple of protocol dilemmas.

"Co-hosting" : First, I'm co-hosting with my grandmother and my mom. That means this shower is probably not going to happen my way, right?! I have to share control with THE TWO matriarchs of my family. And, how do we divide the responsibilities fairly? I KNEW I'd be in charge of games, and OF COURSE I'll bring Registry Bingo. I also LOVE an opportunity to be creative, so I did the invitations. My Grandma immediately offered to host the shower in her air-conditioned home with plenty of space, and my mom offered to provide the cake. Whew! Go, girls!
Then, due to widespread recession, we chose to make this September shower a potluck. After talking to Natalie, my cousin, she preferred only family members bring dishes to share. Well, shoot, how do I know what all her sisters-in-law will bring? And that makes my dish really instrumental. One of a few! What's a really charming AND filling lunch dish for guests?? Any suggestions? I'm still wavering between a  Macaroni and Cheese Casserole, or Costco Croissants and Cheeses for mini sandwiches...what do you suggest?
As a co-host, it's easy to forget key party parts, like drinks, plates, and flowers. While we each have less work, which is fabulous, we might miss something! So, I've found co-hosting to illicit many more phone calls between planners, but does lighten the load for the host!

Another shower quandary is when to host the shower for Monica and Geoffrey, my brother? Their little bundle of boy is due in February. Do we host the shower before or after Christmas? I had my gorgeous Danish son in February, too, and was thrown a bevy of showers in January. I was tired and swollen, and had lost all my pretty by that time, but they were nice in January...do we do the same for Monica? Let me know what you think?

Hi! I'm Anna!

Fancy Produce Wash

So, my toddler was asked over by his grandparents this afternoon, and I'm bouncing around my house like a chicken with it's head cut off....what to do for two hours?!?!? But, THEN I got a text from them...he fell asleep (and these days, sans binky, naps are hard to come by)...so now I've got maybe 4 hours to myself?!!! Yahoo!
Our wedding anniversary is this weekend, so I scooted to the mall and found something delightful to unwrap at a five-year anniversary dinner for my spouse...then went grocery shopping. That's when I got the "He's asleep" text! So directly home I drove to unload the groceries, and eat leftover delivery pizza by myself in front of some housewives show, (oh, come on...you know what I'm talking about). Then I was stuck, like two seconds-ago-stuck! Do I blog for registry bingo or wash the veggies and put them away, a tedious, but cleansing ritual.
I washed the veggies counting on another hour toddler-free to blog something interesting and cool here!
Lisa, a dear friend, and wife to my brother's BEST-MAN has asked me to support and help her brilliant home business, REGISTRYBINGO.com.
Last night, after a long day at work for her and me (you KNOW staying at home is a looong day at work), we sat down over pizza with spouses watching our  2 year olds to teach me the ropes. One thing I knew NOTHING about was Twitter. I've never sent a tweet, or looked at Twitter. And one thing that stands out from last night's lesson is the helpful tips and hints Twitter-People offer one another...especially my people, the creative and everything-organic-loving mothers out there!
This brings me back to my earlier veggie washing. A TIP, if you will! :) One of my favorite mom-friends (actually a really cool college roommate from NY who happened to have twins the second time they got pregnant...that means 3 under 5yrs...props), gives interesting and posh gifts ALWAYS! Katherine handed us a Veggie and Fruit soap that we still use three years later. It's a cool-looking bottle, but the point is that we're washing all the germy-germs from our produce, protecting our baby's food to the best of our American ability! Here's a photo via my iPhone...it's not the best quality, but you get the picture.
More on babyshowers and baby games coming up! I've got my dear cousin's shower September 18th in Fallbrook, CA, and my sister-in-law's first baby shower in January. My cousin's shower is the first bingo game I'll play..can't wait...I already just love looking at the images...they're trendy pop art that's caught my eye forever!
Nice to meet you! Hope to beat you! (At Bingo)
Anna Sheppard Warner