There’s a Bun in the Oven!

Well I’m sure I’ve told you already that my wonderful sister-in-law, Erin, and my (equally wonderful) brother, Mark, are having a baby!  Their baby boy is due at the beginning of June, only weeks away!  In honor of Erin and her baby bump, my sister and I (plus my mom, Erin’s mom and sister-in-law) threw a baby shower brunch at Erin and Mark’s house in Chapel Hill.  Hopefully this will give you some ideas for a party of your own…

Mandy and I with Erin, the guest of honor (and the bun)

There’s a Bun in the Oven!

I love the expression “bun in the oven”, especially because Mandy called Julius my little bun everytime I talked to her.  We decided to theme the whole brunch around the phrase “There’s a bun in the oven!”   For invitations we decided to go green and send evites!  We found some that fit the theme perfectly here.  For favors, I made the potholders I posted a couple weeks ago in a cinnamon bun print from spoonflower, along with a cinnamon bun candle from the dollar store.

Cinnamon Bun themed favors

Decor

We took over Erin and Mark’s house and managed to seat 21 people at three large folding tables both indoors and on their patio under a tent.  It was a beautiful day so we didn’t have to go with our rain plan!  We chose a royal blue for the tablecloths, Erin’s favorite color, and an homage to the baby boy.  To go with our theme, we decorated the tables with cinnamon stick votives  and white flowers studded with cinnamon sticks springing from mason jars (later post).    White onesies, hung from a clothesline, adorned the tent and awaited decoration by guests.

Finished table set ups

Outdoor seating and onesie station

Tablescape

Food

Because of our theme, we decided to host a brunch.  Obviously cinnamon buns would be featured front and center.  Then, totally independently, Mandy and I both came up with the idea of a waffle bar.  I honestly have no idea how it happened, but great minds think alike!  Since we hosted the party at my brother and sister in law’s house we were able to do much of the prep work ourselves.  Aside from the buns, which we ordered from a local bakery, we prepped everything the day before to make the day of party prep easy.  We decided on the following menu; links to the recipes are included for your convenience.

Hot Drinks

• Coffee
• Tea

Mimosa Bar

• Champagne
• Orange Juice
• Grapefruit Juice
• Cranberry Juice

Food

• Brioche cinnamon buns
• Brioche buns
• Bacon Spinach Quiche with Hashbrown Crust(GF)  (Make the quiches the day before and reheat at the party)
• Fruit Salad
• Belgian Waffles (let batter rise overnight in the fridge)

Waffle Bar Toppings

• Maple Syrup
• Whipped Butter
• nutella
• strawberries
• raspberry coulis
• whipped cream
• mini chocolate chips
• pecans
• banana slices
  

  Drink set up

  

  Buffet set up

  

  Full buffet spread complete with Mark & DD’s watermelon baby carriage

Games and Activities

I find that games at showers are always controversial. Some people love them, some people hate them.  I’m personally always happy to play some tasteful games.  We did our personal favorite – “play doh baby”.  We gave everyone play doh and a set amount of time to create a “baby”.  Erin then voted on her favorite babies and their creators won a prize.

At my friend Morgan’s baby shower they had everyone decorate a onesie for the new baby.  We copied this shamelessly, and Erin’s mom went above and beyond getting the supplies.  We supplied plain white onesies (with a cardboard insert to protect the other side of the fabric), fabric paint, fabric markers, stencils and brushes and let everyone go wild designing a onesie for the little man.  We hung the finished onesies around the tent using clothesline and clothespins.  My onesie color scheme very nearly looked like vomit, but I think I managed to save it by turning it into Hobbes.

Mark’s totoro onesie

Full disclosure this is from my shower – my friend Amy made this winning play doh baby and teddy!

My attempt at covering up my onesie disaster

Timeline

The Month Before

• Send out invitations
• Make cinnamon stick candles (in future post)
• Make flower decorating inserts (in future post)
• Make potholder favors (if desired)
• Make table cloths (if desired)

The Day Before

• Go grocery shopping
• Wrap favors
• Arrange Flowers
• Set tables
• Set up drink table
• Set up buffet with dishes – with post it notes in place of food
• Make quiches
• Make waffle batter
• Prepare fruit salad

The Day of

• Reheat quiches
• Prepare waffles before/as guests arrive & keep warm
• Make coulis
• Make whipped butter
• Make waffles
• Set out buffet
• Set out drink buffet
  

  Mark helps package thank you gifts

  

  Julius helps grandma package thank you gifts