Baby shower games guests actually enjoy

The secret to baby shower games is the same as the secret to speeches: short, few and optional. Two or three well-chosen games spread across the afternoon give the gathering shape without turning it into a programme. Here are twelve that consistently land, grouped by the mood they suit.

Easy icebreakers

• Guess the baby photo. Guests bring or send a baby photo of themselves in advance; everyone matches photos to adults. The single most reliable shower game there is.
• Do not say baby. Each guest gets a peg or sticker on arrival; say the word "baby" and whoever catches you takes it. Most pegs at the end wins. Runs itself all afternoon.
• Baby bingo. If gifts are opened on the day, guests fill bingo cards with likely presents and mark them off as opened. Turns gift opening into a spectator sport.
• The price is right. Display six or eight baby essentials; guests guess the total cost. Closest wins, and the parents keep the props.

Guessing and prediction games

• Due date and weight sweepstake. Guests predict the arrival date and weight; the family settles it months later, which gives the day a lovely afterlife.
• How big is the bump? Guests cut ribbon or string to the length they think circles the bump. Cheap, quick and funnier than it sounds. Check the parent-to-be is happy with it first.
• Guess the baby food. Number six unlabelled jars; guests identify each flavour by sight and smell. Braver groups taste them.
• Who knows the parents best? A ten-question quiz about the parents-to-be: how they met, the first pram they looked at, the names they nearly chose.

Quieter, keepsake games

• Advice cards. Guests write one piece of advice or a wish for the baby; collected into a box or book for the parents. The keepsake outlasts every other game on this list.
• Late-night nappy notes. Guests write jokes and encouragement on nappies in marker, to be discovered during 3am changes.
• Name suggestions. Everyone submits one serious and one ridiculous name. Read the ridiculous ones aloud.
• Emoji pictionary. A printed sheet of nursery rhymes or baby phrases written in emoji; quietly competitive and good for mixed ages.

How many, and when

Two or three games is plenty for a two to three hour shower: one running game like the peg game, one seated game after food, and one keepsake activity such as advice cards that guests complete in their own time. Small prizes, chocolates, candles or a bottle of fizz, cost under £15 in total. If your group simply is not a games crowd, a memory book, a photo corner and good food carry the afternoon perfectly well on their own.

One venue note: games with props and movement want a private room rather than a shared space. Pub function rooms, hotel suites and community halls give you the run of the room; a shared tea room suits the quieter, seated games on this list.