The Baby Shower to End ALL Baby Showers! OR Who Brought the Big White Ball????

Ha, ha!! Okay it wasn't the best, but it was good!:) I threw a baby shower for my niece and bestest neighbor in the whole world: Jackie!!! Because I am her favorite aunt:) I had the privilege (drudgery!) of giving her her first (and only!:)) baby shower. Luckily I did have some help, since she is very popular and she has a lot of friends and family so it was a big affair and I'm not just talking about the big white ball she brought along, either!! Jackie's mom was in Cuba (some people will do anything to get out of work!) with Audrey and new baby Luke, so she wasn't here to help with the shower until the day before, so that's why it was more of a big affair for me! The invitations were really cute I thought, and the shower turned out nice, I thought. So basically I thought the whole thing was a hit! But then again those are just my thoughts!!! Jackie got a lot of nice things and is well on her way to dressing this baby for a long time at the expense of other's generosities!!:) We had about 60 people here in my house that doesn't really fit 60, but no one seemed to mind too much, as they lingered here for what felt like forever!!:) We had an ice cream sundae bar with all the best things you can imagine! Jackie likes her ice cream, so I made sure we had something to suit all her tastes - even cookie dough! (Which I made without eggs so nobody got sick! - I hope!) One observation I made: when you get a bunch of women together the louder one group is talking, the louder other groups have to talk to be able to hear each other. Pretty soon it was really loud and hot in my house. I had the a/c already set at 70 to keep everyone comfortable, but there was a lot of hot air. I am really grateful to have my quiet, cool house back!!!
We actually had a family luncheon before the shower so that added a little more work, I mean food to eat!... but we wanted to be able to feed the out of town family and visit some before the shower so, we did! It was yummy as always when you get a bunch of good cooks together! Between my family and Jackie's in-laws and my sister's in-laws there was some good food!
One of the things I made that I was kind of proud of were "cake pops". I found these a few months ago on a blog - bakerella.blogspot.com. Mine were not as cute, but with Allison's help I thought they looked pretty cute on the table. I did Confetti cake with confetti frosting (because it is Jackie's favorite) dipped in pink and white chocolate, and Red Velvet cake with cream cheese frosting dipped in chocolate. I think they were a hit. At least they looked cute! I haven't actually eaten one, yet, but I have a few leftover so I might just have to raid the fridge pretty soon! I better before Jackie reads this post and is knocking on my door!!:) We love Jackie and are so excited to have a new baby next door!!! If only we didn't have to keep calling her "the baby"!!!:) I don't know, I might just start calling her Reba since I know David likes that alot! Anyways, thanks to Clarice for making the yummy mini cupcakes, Allison for ALL her help, and Carrie, Cheri, Michele, Robin, Leann, Julie, etc., etc. I couldn't have pulled this fabtabulous baby shower off without you!!! And thanks to Jackie for bringing the big white ball and making it funner for everyone!!:) The pictures are of Jackie (she's on the left w/ the white ball) and Brooke, Travis' wife who is expecting a boy in Oct. It's really hard to tell in this picture but Brooke is showing!! The baby shower table before the sundae cups of ice cream were on and the other toppings. Notice the cute "cake pops"! The little cousins & nieces at the luncheon before the shower. Yes, that is food in Morgan's mouth! She is so much like Jackie ... no wonder we love 'em both so much!!!