Snips and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails Baby Shower

Saturday, I hosted a "snips and snails and puppy dog tails" baby shower for my dear friend Nancy and sweet baby James. You may know Nancy as the mommy of Kate's BFF Becca, in which case you might wonder "why a shower for a second baby?" Since Becca was a super-mini-micro-premie, Nancy didn't get a "normal" baby shower for Becca (i.e. one while the baby was still in the belly!) and so we were all excited to celebrate this perfectly normal and healthy baby boy, growing right on schedule in mama's tummy.

You know how I go nuts with a theme, so once Nancy mentioned that Baby James' nursery would be puppy-dog themed, we were off and running!

I ordered the invites from Zazzle, and added a puppy paw print to the envelopes (using a balled-up piece of Play-Doh, since I didn't have a stamp that worked).

Like many people, Nancy and I initially wondered "what is a snip?" The consensus on ye olde internet was that the "snips" in the classic rhyme refer to the random little things boys might bring home in their pockets—twigs, leaves, etc.—so I used greenery clipped from a tree in our backyard in the decor as my "snips."

I decorated cupcakes frosted with snips, snails, and puppy dog paw prints. My platters were already being used for veggies and cheeses, so I dressed up a cookie sheet with a ruffle cut from one of the napkins and affixed with hot glue. (It peeled right off when I was done. Isn't hot glue great?)

A little snail made from a string cheese and strip of red pepper hid in the corner of the cheese tray.

I'm more into the thematic decor than cooking, so I just made my basic party fare—veggies, cheese, fruit, and spinach-artichoke dip with crackers, but added puppy chow to the mix, yes, just because it went with the puppy dog theme.

The mantle garland had paper paw prints and a snail, plus greenery snips like in the table arrangements.

We played a couple games and opened presents, of course. It was a lovely time celebrating this wonderful mama and her sweet baby boy!

I know a couple people were aware of my efforts to sculpt a puppy cake-topper out of fondant and are eagerly awaiting seeing the little guy! This was my first time working with fondant and I just couldn't seem to get it smooth, so he looked a little dry and crackly. He was so ashamed that he gradually lowered his head, once held high, down onto his paws to rest :0) I figured cupcakes work better than a cake you have to cut during the party anyway, so puppy stayed hidden away in his tupperware in the pantry.