Help Needed in ref to baby showers.

[PineappleHead]

I'm asking the US moms to be cause I know baby showers are more common here in the US, but all advice is welcome!
My best friend is throwing me a baby shower @ the beginning of February as I am due March 3. She asked me to get my list of people together for who I want to get an invitation.
I THOUGHT that would be no trouble BUT I've hit a road block. She has 20 invitations and so far I have 14 people on my list.
My question is: do I send invites to family members who are in state and risk hurting feelings of those out of state?? By family members I'm talking Aunts cousins, etc- I have my mom, mother in law and all grandmothers on the list already. Should I just leave the list the way it is and just call the family members that aren't on the list so they can just send something later?

I guess I'm just wondering if anyone has a large family like me and ran into this problem yet?

 

[DueMarch2nd]

I am currently living in the UK but am from a large family in america. The trick is, yes invite as many people as possible and they will send a gift as they wont be able to come. Make sure to send the invites as early as so that they dont think you are being rude sending last minute invites to make sure they dont come. If they come, they come, but most likely will send their apologies and gifts

Edit: Calling them without inviting them seems like you are assuming they will give you a gift, that can be seen as rude

 

[PineappleHead]

I am currently living in the UK but am from a large family in america. The trick is, yes invite as many people as possible and they will send a gift as they wont be able to come. Make sure to send the invites as early as so that they dont think you are being rude sending last minute invites to make sure they dont come. If they come, they come, but most likely will send their apologies and gifts

now the next question is, which family members do i choose cause there are a LOT of aunts I can send the invites to, in state or out of state... on both sides of my family AND on DH's side of the family.
I just hate leaving someone out. even if they cant make it. I want them to still get invites. :/

 

[Seity]

I haven't a clue about any of this. I'm mostly friends with guys, so I can't think of anyone who'd actually throw me a shower anyway.

 

[DueMarch2nd]

Why not just send one to all the aunts? And maybe include female cousins on the invites if you are worried about sending loads. Even if they dont live in the same house but only if they live close. If that makes sense.

 

[bky]

Sort of related, but kind of not really ...
Maybe you can include a wishlist or registry info to people who are out of the area? So you can include them while acknowledging that they probably can't make it.

All my family lives far away from me so I made an Amazon wishlist if they feel they want to get me something and mail it (and that way I hopefully won't get a billion newborn size onesies!)

 

[DueMarch2nd]

Yeah definitely registering for a baby shower is important. That way you get what you need. Include the registry info in the invite. If you register at a store, they give you cards to put in with the invites. I think my SIL registered at babies r us and some other place and put the cards in the envelope with invites. I even got an invite and I live 3500 miles away it is just the way it is done in our family, invite everyone

 

[PineappleHead]

yeah i registered @ babies R us and target.
if it were up to me, i'd invite all the aunts even if they were out of state just so everyone could at least get an invite. BUT since my best friend is the one throwing the shower, she only can afford 20 invites.... i have 14 ppl on the list so far that i know will be there and theres 6 places left... and those 6 places are my delima cause i have like 8 or 9 aunts that i want to invite. lol.

 

[QuintinsMommy]

for my baby shower I invited EVERYONE, didn't want any ones feelings hurt.

maybe talk to your friend and say you want like 25 people there so you can invite all your aunts and most of the time not everyone you invite will come.

 

[Hollie506]

I had a baby shower and printed my own invitations...could you not do something like this and send it to the rest of the family members other than the 20 that your friend is sending? xxx

 

[DueMarch2nd]

Or maybe do an e-vite for some of the more computer generation guests.

 

[Seity]

Have her use Vistaprint. For our wedding 'save the date' postcards we used them. Cost us $5 for 100 postcards (aka free + shipping) and then it was just the cost of the postage. We also bought our own paper and did our own wedding invitations and thank you notes. We paid $2 for a box of blank wedding invitations and printed them ourselves. And I think $20 for the card stock for the thank you cards.

 

[Paula M.]

I invited everyone who was close to my husband and I. It was around 30 guests total. I wanted to invite more but then that would get out of hand. My rule of thumb is that if you feel comfortable sending them your registry info (we registered at MyRegistry which is a great site if have any registry questions) then they should share this special day with you as well.