How to Throw a Baby Shower ~ The French Estate ~ Morris Girl's Style ~ Part IV

"There are souls in this world who have the gift of finding joy everywhere, and leaving it behind them when they go."

~Frederick William Faber

Shannon has such a soul. No wonder so many people put so much effort into their gifts to her.

When it comes to gifts- fun is in. Brie and her mom Leslie put together a special breakfast tray for Shannon. You simply can't look at it and not smile.

The Internet is a source of inspiration in gift-giving. A picture on Pinterest inspired Sarah Maxwell to put together this delightful diaper- wreath.

A big trend in gifts is matching presents to the parents interests.

The father- to- be, Kenny, is quite the fisherman. Reeled in his first Marlin when he was 6. Earned his his way through college working at the largest independent fishing store west of the Mississippi at  The  Longfin .  He is a principal  in the hottest new fishing clothing line- Bass Knuckles.  Items themed to "Daddy's little fishing buddy" inspired  giggles. 

Sandy Tran and Kelly Morris enjoying the shower gifts

Sarah Maxwell found the tackle box on a seller on Etsy.  The lady custom makes the boxes...

Inside were berets with water creatures crafted from ribbons... a red crab with googly eyes and goldfish.

Mother-to- be Shannon wasn't just born with movie-star looks. She works at it. Three days a week, even through the pregnancy, she hits the gym. Mommy's future exercise partner was given the proper attire to work out with mom.

Sarah Maxwell's expression says it all. The love that went into the gifts was simply jaw-dropping

A big trend is to make the presentation as important as the gift.

Baskets are hot replacements for traditional wrapping. Lee Trado put together something I've never seen before, but Kelly tells me is a regular hit at the baby showers she's been invited to... 

Clothes hung with pins on a clothes line... pull one item out, and another outfit follows... 

My sister Gina holding the center of the clothes line up

A line that stretched across an entire corner of the room, engaging guests to leap from their seats to help show off a wardrobe now more complete than many a guest's):-

So much more impressive than if the outfits had been stacked one on top of the other in a box. 

Alden enjoys the accolades for her creation.

Homemade gifts are always in fashion. The pink tutu a gift from a niece, Alden Plunk.  Maybe we have a future fashion designer in the family. 

Registry's aren't just for brides anymore. From the Internet registry, Gerry and I chose exactly the model baby monitor the couple decided met their needs. 

A special thanks to Shannon's sister, Tracy, for keeping tabs on who gave what for the thank you cards soon to be mailed. If I had been assigned this job- I can't read my own handwriting... 

The best trend of all is that more important than the gifts are the people who came.

What I love about Kenny and Shannon is the company they keep. G, Geena, Geninna- by every name she is called, the wife of Kenny's partner in the fishing business is a woman to be admired. Life's toughest critic is often the mother-in-law. Hers teaches parenting. These words were volunteered by her husbands mother, Glenda Bona.  

" I think she is one of the best mom's I have ever known. This little guy  is totally thriving and it is not an accident. She has worked with children since she was in high school. Then in college, she was a Kinesiology major. She taught disabled children movement. She is smart and has great instincts with children. I believe that is why Joseph is so quick to learn to walk and talk and interact like a champ. She is an amazing mom. I learn from watching her with Joseph."



Thank you all for partaking in this about to-be grandmother's unbridled joy. I hope you had as much fun following this series as I had producing it. 

The group photo was taken from Kelly's Facebook page. A huge shout out for helping me ID all these photos. There is no way I could have turned out this series in under a week without your help.

Today's quote was found on GoodReads.


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