I planned a “Welcome to the World” map-themed baby shower for my sister and her husband, the parents-to-be, in pastel colors with hot air balloons, hearts, and lots of loving touches. I was inspired by their love of travel and their adventures together around the world. One of the things they hope to do after their baby arrives is travel with him around the world, and his nursery is also travel-themed, so I wanted to throw them a shower that was perfectly themed to their style and tastes.

The mama-to-be – my sister – likes to keep things simple and minimal, so I knew that too many decorative items would be a bit over-the-top for her. Instead, I focused on meaningful details that I knew she would love.

I started with a Pinterest board, which was fabulous for inspiration. Once I had narrowed down the theme, I turned to Etsy to purchase many of the creative items, including the “Welcome to the World, Little One” wreath sign, “Wishes for Baby” printable, Atlas wreath with burlap flower, hot air balloon and heart garland made out of maps, favor bags, heart map stickers for the bags, and tent cards. The hot air balloon touches are my favorite because my sister loved hot air balloons when she was a child, and one of her earliest birthday party themes as a toddler was a hot air balloon theme. I loved bringing it back for her baby’s shower.

I scoured my local Michaels and HomeGoods for other themed details, including the hot air balloon box for the wishes cards, the journals with travel quotes on the front, the map papers which I used as a wrap for the flower vase, and the suitcase for the favors.

I borrowed the globe from my son’s room and uncovered a few books from our library to use on the wishes table, and found the adorable globe foil-wrapped chocolates on Amazon, which ended up being a great resource for all sorts of party items, including the mini clothespins, the New York City “mapkins” (a nod to the dad-to-be’s hometown), and our paper and plastic cups and plates.

The vegan menu was catered locally, and a friend did calligraphy for the beautiful map-themed tent cards. I adored them! The grandmother-to-be made all the cupcakes, which were also vegan, and we set them up on different platters and cake stands. Our flowers were from Whole Foods, and the daffodils were picked from our yard just one day before a spring snowstorm killed them all.

Guests took home favor bags at the end of the shower, which included organic dark chocolates from Whole Foods and foil-wrapped globes.

My sister adored her shower, and can’t wait to welcome her little one to the world very soon!