How to Use Baby Milestone Cards
When your little one reaches a milestone, take photos of them with the matching card! It's a perfect way to look back at those special memories.
Event Planning
What Are Baby Announcements Cards?
After you've had a baby, you will definitely want to let everyone know! But what do you include on Baby announcement cards? And when should you send them?
What is a Christening vs a Baptism?
Welcoming a new child into the family is such an exciting time. If you have had a baby, you may be thinking about baptising or christening your child. What are the differences between these religious rites?
How Much Money Do You Give for a Christening?
If you can't think of a gift suitable for a christening, then you may wish to give them money instead. But how much money should you give? It's a tricky question! Here is how much money you're really expected to give as a gift
Ideas for Christening Party Favours
At the end of your little one's christening, you'll want to thank guests for coming with christening party favours. Here are some of our favourite favours to inspire you
How Do You Plan a Christening?
A christening is a beautiful way to welcome your baby, and the perfect first step in a life of religion. Here is a simple guide on planning an unforgettable christening
How Do You Word a Christening Invitation?
A cute poem? A lengthy formal paragraph? Something short and sweet? How exactly do you word a christening invitation?
Who Do You Invite to a Christening?
A celebration of your child, and a promise to raise them in faith, a christening is an important celebration. But when you're writing the guest list, who should you invite to the christening?
Do You Send Invitations for a Christening?
When there's a new baby in the family, you're bound to be excited about the christening. But if you're a first-time parent, you might not be too sure about the correct etiquette in this situation. That's particularly true nowadays when the internet has replaced so much of our traditional communication. Here are some quick tips to ensure that your baby event is handled the right way.
Why send invitations?
Invitations are a nice, personal way of inviting friends and family to celebrate your new baby. A christening is usually a fairly small event, so it's easy to take control of the guest list. The invitation can often become a cherished memento - not only for the baby as he or she grows up, but also for the godparents, grandparents and the rest of the family.
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What should you write on a christening invitation?
Think about how formal you want the invitations to be. Just like a wedding, you can set the tone of the entire event by choosing a particular level of formality for the invitations.
A more formal invitation should include your names, with no abbreviations and all numbers and dates written out as words:
"Mr and Mrs Stephen Jones request the honour of your presence at the baptism of their daughter Susana.
Saturday, the seventeenth of November at eleven o'clock
Saint Mary's Church, Leatherhead, Surrey"
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If you prefer to invite your friends and family in a more informal manner, then your invitation may look completely different:
"Please join us for the baptism of Susana on the 17th of November at 11:00.
St Mary's Church, Leatherhead, Surrey"
Regardless of the level of formality, be sure to leave a space for an RSVP.
How soon should you send invitations to a christening?
Unlike a wedding, a christening usually only has a few weeks' notice, so send the invitations out as soon as your venue is confirmed. If you feel snowed under with the new baby, ask family members or the godparents to help you organise the invitations.
What about invitations for non-religious baby ceremonies?
Some parents are choosing alternative routes to traditional christenings and baptisms, and embracing modern alternatives. Even if you'd rather not have a church ceremony, you can still enjoy a special day for your little one and celebrate their life!
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Look at invitations for naming ceremonies to welcome your new baby.
What Should Be Included in a Birth Announcement?
A new arrival in the family is a joyous time for all and understandably, new parents are as keen to share their happy news as their nearest and dearest are to hear it.
While a phone call or, in modern times a WhatsApp message, are personal and immediate ways to spread the joy - a baby announcement card is becoming increasingly popular too. Especially once you’ve had time to take stock and settle into life with the new addition.
Baby announcement cards are a lovely way to share your news with those outside your immediate family, but who you’d still like to introduce to your little bundle of joy.
But other than the baby’s name, what else can you include on the card?
Photographs
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It’s a good idea to wait at least a few weeks before sending the baby announcement cards to give you time to collect a few nice photos, which can show how much the little one has changed since birth. While some baby announcement cards may include just the one picture, there’s no reason why yours can’t show off the new arrival in a few different outfits and poses. Try and keep it to a maximum of three pictures though, to ensure the receiver can clearly admire the baby’s features, and that there’s comfortable room for other details.
Birth details
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Among the first questions, new parents get asked are about the baby’s birth weight and the time they were born - so be sure to include these details alongside the date of birth. You can also let friends and family know where the baby came into the world if you have space.
Personal messages
While some people may like to keep the baby announcement cards simple and generic for all who receive them, others may like to leave space to include a little personal message from the parents. This can be anything from delight at the new arrival, thanks for any cards or gifts received, or an invitation to a christening or celebration of the baby’s birth.
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The beauty of baby announcement cards is that, while there is standard information most will include, they can also be really personal to the people sending and receiving them.
When Should You Send Baby Announcements?
Baby announcements are a lovely way to let friends and family know of a new arrival.
The cards can include photographs of the bouncing bundle of joy, as well as a name, date of birth, time and location of birth, weight, and a personal message too if you wish.
But how soon after the baby’s arrival into the world should you be expected to send them out?
Following tradition?
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Typically, new parents will send their baby announcement cards out within six months of their little one’s birth. This is hopefully enough time to settle into a new routine of nappy changing and sleep deprivation, without it being so long after the arrival that everyone will already know all about your new addition.
Get creative
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Some may like to leave it a little longer, and include a collage of photographs on the card, showing baby’s changes from birth to several months old. If you decide to wait a while, you could even add a lovely personal touch by decorating the cards with baby’s hand or footprint at birth and after 6 or 9 months, to show their growth and development.
Of course, there’s also the option to send an earlier email note or post your news on your social media accounts, to keep your loved ones in the loop until you have time to send more formal cards.
Do it early
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But, if you’d like to get the cards sent out to your friends and family sooner, whether because you’d like to thank them for cards and gifts, invite them to a celebration or christening, or simply just because you’d like to share the happy news as soon as possible, then it could pay to be organised before the baby arrives.
While you obviously won’t know all the details to include or have any photos, you can still give the inevitable ‘baby brain’ a helping hand and be prepared by selecting your template - or designing one if you’re creative - ready to add the all-important information when the time arrives.
Whatever you decide, baby announcement cards are a lovely way to let your nearest and dearest know of the new addition. So, whenever they arrive in the post, you can be sure they’ll be treasured.
What to Put on a Baby Announcement Card
Here at Dotty About Paper, we get plenty of questions about one of the most exciting parts of welcoming a new baby into the world - telling everyone else about it! Baby announcement cards might seem a little old-fashioned, but they're a personable and unique way to tell your family and friends about the new arrival. So, we've put together a handy guide to what you should put on a baby announcement card. Our large selection of baby announcement cards has something special for everyone.
Decide on your style
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Are you going to be formal or fun? Will you use photos of your new bundle of joy or cute cartoons and pictures? The type of card you pick will often inform the kind of information you put on there, so pick your card carefully.
Keep it simple
The purpose of the birth announcement card is to let people know that there's a brand new baby in the world - and it's yours! So it's better to keep things simple when you sit down to write it, rather than cluttering the card up with information people don't need to know. Traditionally, the card begins with a phrase or saying like 'Congratulations' or 'Hello, World'. Then, the names and surnames of the parents and of course, the new full name of the baby.
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Some cards also include other information about the baby, including its date of birth, what time it was born, how much it weighed and its height. You can also include the names of any siblings that the new baby has and how proud everybody is about the new birth.
Example Structure
Mrs X and Mr Y are proud to announce the birth of
First - Middle - Last Name
January 1st 2020
6lb 5oz
17 inches
Extra Information
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If you're looking for your cards to be informal and fun, you can include a little message at the bottom of them. Sometimes these will be pre-printed, so make sure you pick an announcement card that matches how you feel. Lots of parents choose phrases like 'Mum and baby are doing well' or 'Mum and Dad are tired but in love with the new arrival'. If you do want to put an extra message onto the card, pick something that comes from the heart so people can really see your joy through the announcement.