Never Say “Wee Little Babe”
One of the funniest and most popular shower games. Provide each guest with a dried bean and warn them to never say the phrase “wee little babe.” The first woman to hear someone say “wee little babe” gets that woman’s dried bean. The woman with the most dried beans wins. Especially good for showers at which the mother-to-be is not yet betrothed.
Pass the Dirty Swaddling Clothes
Similar to “Hot Yams,” this “dirty” game is sure to delight nuns and midwives alike. Take a set of fresh swaddling clothes. Mix together molasses and grain cereal and put mixture in just the “right” place. Pass the “soiled” swaddling clothes while someone sings the Ave Maria. The woman left holding the clothes at the end of the song is surely the next to carry child.
Whose Water Breaks First?
Girls, this is one for the winter months. Place walnuts in clay cups and fill the cups with water. Leave them in the waste field overnight to freeze. On the day of the shower, hand a cup to each guest and see who can warm her cup the fastest and retrieve the nut. Leftover walnuts may be pulped and spread on blackloaf for a sweet dessert.
Babies of the Bible
Fun and pious. Go around in a circle naming famous babies of the Bible. Laugh viciously as the maid stutters into her wimple.
Pregnant for a Day (Co-Ed)
Collect several sheep bladders. On the day of the shower, inflate them to the size of spring melons. When the serfs return from threshing barley, instruct them to place the bladders under their tunics and perform a sequence of household tasks, like sponging the butter churn, servicing the loom, and exorcising spirits of the impure. Whoever collapses from exhaustion first, loses, and receives a raw egg in his work sandal.
You Said It, I Didn’t
While the expecting mother opens gifts, have someone commit to memory everything that she says, like “My, what a big loaf of dark rye,” or “Dried fruits are perfect this time of year.” When she’s done opening her gifts, have the woman who committed the items to memory stand up and recite them, saying “This is what mother said to husband on the night of conception!”
The Price of Pregnancy
From Hildegaard of Ipswich. Gather ten different baby items (e.g., bundles of teething sticks, finely ground salt pork, gourd rattles). Ask your guests to estimate how much each item is worth in barter. Whoever is closest receives a signed papal indulgence.
Succubus Piñata
For crafty moms. Construct a succubus replica from the used dolls of grown children. Mothers new and old can celebrate their victory over the sexual predations of the spirit world by taking the distaff to this foul creature of the night.