Across the World Baby Naming Ceremonies Hold Amazing Tradition
October 25, 2009 by Edie Mindell
Filed under pregnancy symptoms
The purpose of a baby shower is to celebrate the arrival of a new baby, and to welcome the little one into the world. Today, expectant mothers often decide to know the gender of the baby before they give birth, and it is known ahead of the baby shower. However, in some cases, parents choose to wait until the due date to know the sex of the baby and be surprised the day that the infant arrives.
In American society, when the gender of the baby is known, parents often begin brainstorming ideas and deciding on some names that they believe will be perfect for the baby. In many cases, parents already know what they want to name the baby even before the child is born. This is not the case, however, for various different cultures.
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There are a variety of different cultures that view the baby-naming process from a completely different perspective. Each cultural group generally has some sort of a baby-naming ceremony or traditional process. From the Jewish to the Japanese, each culture views the act of giving a name to a baby from a very interesting and distinct angle.
In Japan, the baby naming ceremony is typically held seven days after the babys birth. The name is written in Kanji, which are Chinese characters that are usually used in the modern Japanese Iogographic writing system. On this seventh day, the Japanese give their children a first name and a last name, but no middle name, which is a common custom in American society. Girls are usually given names that are associated with purity and morality, and boys are often associated with their position in the family.
Greek families also often name their babies on the seventh day after their birth, and sometimes on the tenth day. Traditionally, first-born males are named after their paternal grandfather, and first-born females are named after their paternal grandmother. The Greek Orthodox Church also strongly influences the baby-naming process, and many infants are given the names of saints. Because of this saint name acquisition, children acquire their saints name day. Therefore, many Greek Orthodox people celebrate their lives on two occasions: their actual birth date and their saints name day.
For many Italian and Hispanic cultures, baby names are also often influenced by religion. In these areas, the Roman Catholic religion is the most prevalent; therefore, biblical names like Maria (in Hispanic culture), and Paulo (in Italian culture) are common.
In Jewish culture, baby girls have what is called the Zeved Habat ceremony, while baby boys have the Berit Milah ceremony. The Zevet Habat is a small ceremony held at a home or in a synagogue. During the ceremony, which is led by a Rabbi, the mother recites a word, the name-giving prayer is said, and she then gives thanks to everyone.
There are countless different ways of naming a baby, and there is no right or wrong method to giving your child the perfect name. It is interesting to see, however, the traditions and customs of baby naming across the globe.
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Baby Shower Diaper Cakes Make Wonderful Baby Shower Craft Activities
October 22, 2009 by Edie Mindell
Filed under pregnancy symptoms
A common new tradition that began a few years ago is to include an arts and crafts segment as part of your baby showers itinerary. Arts and crafts are a great way to create fun and excitement, and to strengthen bonds between friends and family. Many women, and even men, enjoy spending time together while practicing fun activities like arts and crafts. Today, there are several baby-related crafts that are a blast and will create a great time for your guests at your celebration.
The most common craft for baby showers is probably the diaper cake. This is a group activity that all your guests can do together. This is a great way to start the party, as it creates a mood of togetherness and establishes unity among all your friends and family. For this activity, you will need around fifty diapers, fifty feet of a smaller, narrow ribbon, and eight feet of a thicker, wide ribbon. Cut the fifty feet of thin ribbon into one-foot segments.
Have your guests roll up each diaper and tie in place with a thin piece of ribbon. Ribbon can be baby blue for a boy, and pink for a girl. For a more neutral color, soft green or light yellow work fabulously. Start the base of your diaper cake with twenty-five diapers; stand them together in a circle. Use fifteen diapers for the next level of the “cake,” and then eight diapers for the top level of your cake. Make each level separately and tie each group of diapers, or each level of the cake, with a strand of wide ribbon. Now, stack the levels of the diaper cake in order from largest to smallest, and you should have a wonderful baby diaper cake!
Baby bottle sand art is a fun craft that render fabulous souvenirs that your guests can take home. All you need for this activity is at least the same amount of baby bottles as your number of guests, different colors of sand, and funnels. Baby bottles can be the simple, inexpensive ones, and the sand should match your color palette for the baby shower. Distribute the baby bottles among all your guests. Have them fill the baby bottles up with several layers of different color sand using the funnels, and then close the baby bottles with their tops.
These turn out beautiful, and they are easy to make; they also make great party favors from which your guests can always remember your baby shower. For a special touch, you can have ribbon that has been personalized with your name and the date of the shower. You can also have stickers made with the title of the event and the date, and stick them on the baby bottles.
Scrapbooking is an art that so many people have come to love nowadays, and also makes a great craft at baby showers. You can give each guest a layout page and supplies, and have them decorate a background page. These can be put together to form an album for the baby shower.
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Baby Shower Fashion for Those That Want to Party In Style
April 2, 2009 by Edie Mindell
Filed under pregnancy symptoms
For those of you who have never attended a baby shower, one question that is often asked is, What do I wear? Dressing up for baby showers can be lots of fun, and picking out your outfit should never be a drag. Although there are many different types of baby showers with different levels of fanciness, there are a few basic guidelines that can help you choose a fashionable and appropriate outfit for the big event. Whether you are working with what you have at home, or going shopping for a cute, new outfit, this article will help you with your baby shower fashion dilemmas.
In the winter, fashion is all about classiness and style without showing too much skin. Although dark colors are easier to find than pastel tones during winter, there are always classic light colors available in department stores and fashion stores that you can purchase year round. In the winter you can also pull off a combination of say, a long sleeve pastel colored fashion top matched with a pair of black or gray slacks.
Winter allows for mixing the traditional baby shower pastel colors with the current colors of the season, which tend to be darker. Winter scarves, blazers, and elegant jackets in light colors are also popular items for winter baby showers. Long semi-formal dresses that are not too casual but not too dressy also work well for winter showers.
Spring baby showers tend to be the most centered around pastel colors. When this time of year comes around, stores fill their racks with pretty, spring colors that are fashionable for spring baby showers, a cute dress or a nice top paired with a skirt are good outfit choices for the spring.
If the baby shower is for a baby girl, pink is a fabulous color to wear; if the baby is a boy, baby blue works perfect. Light yellow and soft green are neutral colors that work well for girl or boy baby showers. There are no set rules for what colors to wear, but pastel colors are definitely a must for spring. Headscarves and pretty, feminine jewelry are great accessories for spring baby showers.
When the summer comes around, the color palette for baby shower wardrobe becomes a little brighter and a little more fun. Summer is representative of heat, sun, sand, and fun! For summer baby showers, wear a cute summer dress with a nice pattern, or, pair a pretty, sleeveless or short sleeve top with an A-line or flowing skirt that lies right above or at the knees.
Classy Bermudas are a summer must have and will look fabulous at a summer baby shower. Colors like aqua, pink, light orange and bright yellow are perfect for the summer. Jewelry and accessories can also be bolder and brighter for a summer baby shower. Colorful clutches are a fun and cute alternative for purses in the summer.
In the fall, seasonal colors are not as bright as the in the summer, but soft, light colors are still in. Things like knee-length skirts, classic cropped pants, and three-quarter sleeve tops are some great ideas for fall. Remember that although there are guidelines for baby shower fashion, it is important to keep in mind the time, place, and theme of the shower.