Opening gifts at shower poll - WWYD

ashleah83

My BFF and I think watching someone open gifts at a shower is boring, but I know it is traditional. She wants me to help her and other hostesses decide what we should do at my shower next Saturday.

[Poll]

jlsimon56

I voted yes, but it's nicer if the cake is served at that time.  That way, if I don't care what you're opening, I can eat my cake.  :-)  The last shower I was at was almost 4 hours long b/c they waited to serve the cake until after all the presents were opened.  BORING. 

pregarella

My shower is this Sat.....with 50 guests, I know I would want to hang myself if I had to sit through that.  I want the shower to be fun for the guests and let them mingle and eat and drink and not feel obligated to ooh and ahh over another washcloth.   We are not opening gifts in any "official" manner.....but towards the end, when people start leaving, I'll probably start doing it and those who want to see (like both grandmas) will probably stay and hang out.  The shower is at my house, so I'm not going anywhere.

SarahKate31

I like playing the gift bingo game during present opening. That gives the guests something to do other than stare at the mom-to-be while she opens gifts. But I do think it's nice to open gifts at the shower.

JayElleJayCee

jlsimon56:

I voted yes, but it's nicer if the cake is served at that time.  That way, if I don't care what you're opening, I can eat my cake.  :-)  The last shower I was at was almost 4 hours long b/c they waited to serve the cake until after all the presents were opened.  BORING. 

This. Great idea.. lol

IdigDirt

I feel bad for the guests when they have to sit and watch you open gifts but at the same time they probably really want to see your face when you open their gift. I like the serve cake during the opening idea. We didn't have cake or games at mine, just lunch then opening gifts a bit more eating and then everyone left. 

erinlovesdavid

It would bother me if gifts were not opened at the shower. A lot of people (myself being one of them) put a lot of time and effort into selecting a useful and thoughtful gift, and part of that gift-giving experience is watching the recipient open it.

I was at a shower last summer where the hostess made up BINGO cards. Each square had a baby item listed on it (bottles, onesies, bibs, blankets, etc), and as the mom-to-be opened her gifts, guests could mark off the square for that item. It was a fun way to keep things from being too boring while the gifts were being opened. The first person to get a "BINGO" won a prize. I thought it was kind of fun.

LeeLee930

I had a fairly big shower.  I opened gifts in between courses instead of waiting until the end. Those who wanted to pay attention did, those who wanted to talk to other guests did and paid attention when I was opening their gift.  It was held at a hotel with event space and we were on a time limit which makes a difference.    

DaisyJanie

erinlovesdavid:

It would bother me if gifts were not opened at the shower. A lot of people (myself being one of them) put a lot of time and effort into selecting a useful and thoughtful gift, and part of that gift-giving experience is watching the recipient open it.

This! I usually try to put something handmade in there, and sorry, but I like to see people ooh and ah over it. If it's a big shower where there will be lots of presents, it'll necessarily end up that not everyone is paying attention to you, but that's fine, the people that are interested can watch and everybody else can eat cake. If it's a small thing at a restaurant or something, well everyone will probably have to watch but it doesn't go on very long in that situation.

SarahAndBen09

erinlovesdavid:

It would bother me if gifts were not opened at the shower. A lot of people (myself being one of them) put a lot of time and effort into selecting a useful and thoughtful gift, and part of that gift-giving experience is watching the recipient open it.

I was at a shower last summer where the hostess made up BINGO cards. Each square had a baby item listed on it (bottles, onesies, bibs, blankets, etc), and as the mom-to-be opened her gifts, guests could mark off the square for that item. It was a fun way to keep things from being too boring while the gifts were being opened. The first person to get a "BINGO" won a prize. I thought it was kind of fun.

Fun idea!  I hadn't heard of that one before.

sunshine336

erinlovesdavid:

It would bother me if gifts were not opened at the shower. A lot of people (myself being one of them) put a lot of time and effort into selecting a useful and thoughtful gift, and part of that gift-giving experience is watching the recipient open it.

I was at a shower last summer where the hostess made up BINGO cards. Each square had a baby item listed on it (bottles, onesies, bibs, blankets, etc), and as the mom-to-be opened her gifts, guests could mark off the square for that item. It was a fun way to keep things from being too boring while the gifts were being opened. The first person to get a "BINGO" won a prize. I thought it was kind of fun.

I agree that people want to see you open their present- they probably couldn't care less about the gifts everyone else got you though!  At my shower the bingo wouldn't really have worked since all we got were clothes and gift cards, but I like the cake/ desserts idea.  

At my shower I felt a little awkward since my MIL and aunts forced me to read every card out loud but they were the only ones listening and everyone else was talking to each other and eating.  So I was talking over people and felt really dumb.  I would have preferred to open peoples' gifts over the course of the shower (when they brought me their gift) without it being a big thing where everyone is forced to watch.  But I didn't have a say.

kbel424

SarahAndBen09:

erinlovesdavid:

It would bother me if gifts were not opened at the shower. A lot of people (myself being one of them) put a lot of time and effort into selecting a useful and thoughtful gift, and part of that gift-giving experience is watching the recipient open it.

I was at a shower last summer where the hostess made up BINGO cards. Each square had a baby item listed on it (bottles, onesies, bibs, blankets, etc), and as the mom-to-be opened her gifts, guests could mark off the square for that item. It was a fun way to keep things from being too boring while the gifts were being opened. The first person to get a "BINGO" won a prize. I thought it was kind of fun.

Fun idea!  I hadn't heard of that one before.

I agree, I love the bingo idea!!

Mango Mom

I voted yes, but understand that it is boring and lame.  However, when I get someone a gift that I spent alot of time picking out I get excited to see them open it and see their reaction.  I think it would be rude for them not to be opened for everyone to see.

tdeddington

I agree open them Here are some of the things my sister did at my shower that made it more enjoyable for the 40+ guests:

- Put the tables in a "U" shape so that I was in the center, if they wanted people COULD see what I was unwrapping instead of having to stretch to see or ask

-We put the food directly on the table so people didn't have to get up to get a plate, the food was right there to nibble & chat

-We also played a game where every 6th present I opened, whoever that was from got to pick a "gift" then when I had opened 6 more, that person could either steal the first gift or pick another (sort of like white elephant!)

 It was fun, and then people could chat & catch up & eat, or watch me open presents...whatever worked for them! Good luck

cvl105

I think some guests really like to see all the things you get, so I voted "yes, open them at the shower". 

An alternative, which my Mom did for my shower, is to ask everyone not to wrap their gifts.  This way you can go through all the presents a lot quicker without having to unwrap everything.  Big items were just unwrapped and smaller things were put into gift bags.  It made it go by a lot quicker!

OctoberCAPA

People want to see their gift being opened.  Maybe they don't care about watching gifts from others being opened (generally), but they do care about their own.  If you didn't want to open gifts, you should have let people know when they RSVP'd to wrap gifts in clear cellophane paper so people could still see the gifts.

Suggestions to make it less boring--open in stages, i.e. open 5-6, play a game, open 5-6, serve cake, open 5-6, play another game.  Bingo during gift opening is great.  Having cake during gifts is great.  Asking people show up and give you something and not get to see your reaction is not great.

luvbeingmom

it's no different than a birthday party really, everyone wants to see you open presents!

but i agree, feed them or play games while you're opening presents

at my last baby shower my hostess didn't cut the cake until after the presents were opened and it made me feel awkward to have everyone staring at me while i opened presents

it's a very emotional thing to open up presents for your little baby to come, and everyone wants to see it! lol 

JuneBugsMommy

I voted to open them at the shower but I agree it can get a little boring after the 100th "awww" after each present is opened. My shower is going to be very big, around 75 people, so I told my mom I should open presents while everyone eats. I don't want my guests to be bored and I'd really prefer to not have all the attention on me so I think this will be perfect!

JuneBugsMommy

SarahKate31:

I like playing the gift bingo game during present opening. That gives the guests something to do other than stare at the mom-to-be while she opens gifts. But I do think it's nice to open gifts at the shower.

I've never heard of the gift bingo game, could be a great option for my shower... Care to explain?

ashleah83

Thanks everyone for responding to my poll and also for all the great suggestions on how to open gifts without boring my guests!

Edit: PS will let you know how it goes! 

JaqiDec04

We served cake, and they ate while I opened.

Also, we played gift bingo. Each time a gift is opened, you can cross it off your bingo card. Then everyone is paying attention, and they have something to do.

People come to a baby shower to shower you with gifts, its would be rude to not open them for everyone to see. 

JaqiDec04

sunshine336:

erinlovesdavid:

i was at a shower last summer where the hostess made up BINGO cards. Each square had a baby item listed on it (bottles, onesies, bibs, blankets, etc), and as the mom-to-be opened her gifts, guests could mark off the square for that item. It was a fun way to keep things from being too boring while the gifts were being opened. The first person to get a "BINGO" won a prize. I thought it was kind of fun.

I agree that people want to see you open their present- they probably couldn't care less about the gifts everyone else got you though!  At my shower the bingo wouldn't really have worked since all we got were clothes and gift cards, but I like the cake/ desserts idea.  

My mom printed up labels and stuck them on each present/card/whatever as people walked in. The labels said things like: Pink Motorcycle, Stroller, HighChair, etc. Those may not have been what was in the gift, but this way, someone was guaranteed to win because everything would have been called out. It was so much fun. Seriously, everyone enjoyed it. And it caused a lot of laughs and made the gift opening process so much more fun.

clo1982

Just had my shower yesterday. So that people wouldn't be bored and stuck there all day I ate first then once everyone else got their food, I started opening presents. They got cake while I was opening and we were out of there in 2 hours flat! I think most people chit chat with other guests instead of watching anyway so as long as you don't take up their entire afternoon they will watch when they want and eat/talk when they want.

queensteph17

I had a 'display shower'. All the gifts were brought unwrapped and then displayed for everyone to see. It was a huge hit bc the guests cuold walk up and see what was given (name tags were put on the gifts) and I didn't have to open gifts for an hour!

theofania08

to speed things up you could ask guests to use clear wrapping paper

Cjohn1211

We had 50 guests at our shower and I was afraid of people getting bored too. I made DH come with me. He unwrapped while I opened/read the card and we both thanked. It worked out well.

asl71476

You have to open them at the shower, no question about it. I'd consider it really rude if I took the time to buy a gift, went to the shower, and then the guest of honor just packed up the gifts without opening them. It absolutely gets boring watching someone open presents, but if whoever is hosting the shower has enough food being served, cake, and a few games, while you're opening gifts, then it's not as bad.

I had my shower yesterday and there were 80 people there. I broke a sweat trying to open presents as quickly as possible. I also didn't care if everyone talked while I was opening - I mean, it's weird being on the spot like that too. But I know that it meant a lot to my relatives to see me open my gift, and then look up at them and thank them personally. 

BosMama626

I voted SS - I hate any sort of shower b/c of the gift opening potion of it.

I asked all my guests to bring their gift unwrapped and everything would be put on display.  This worked out great and there was much more time for migling and chatting with friends and family I hadn't seen in a while.

cookierlr1

I enlisted the help of the children at my shower. A couple people thought it was a great idea to individually wrap every little thing they bought me (a washcloth, a pacifier, etc...) so when I got to those gifts I had the little kids help me unwrap them. Made things go a lot faster, and they were entertained!