Not knowing the gender of a baby is not necessarily a setback when it comes to planning a baby shower. Before the development of ultrasounds people still had showers, but the party would be more neutral. Many parents choose to have a delivery surprise and this should be embraced when planning a baby shower and can even create more options for the hostess. There are many party themes to choose from and a wide variety of gender neutral gifts and registry choices. Not knowing the sex of the baby can help guests focus more on the mother-to-be and pampering her before the impending arrival.

Choose a theme for your baby shower. Although not necessary often a theme will make the planning stages smoother and you can choose the invitations, decorations, games and favors within the same theme. A few easy themes to try are a “Pea in the Pod,” “Noah’s Ark,” or “Rubber Duck”. Or go with a color scheme – good neutral colors for baby showers are traditionally yellow and green but you can incorporate some non-traditional colors too like orange, purple or even red. Alternatively, use pink and blue as your theme as both will be appropriate until the baby is born.

There are plenty of options for invitations that do not specify gender. This is where the theme will come in handy rather than focusing on the sex of the baby. The wording on the invitation will have to be slightly different as you don’t know the gender of the baby. Instead of saying “Baby Boy” try just saying “Baby Jones” or “Bundle of Joy.”

Try making a diaper cake (essentially stacking diapers in the shape of a cake and decorating it with ribbons, stuffed animals and baby necessities) for the shower that uses a green or yellow color theme. Frogs or ducks are also gender neutral. It is easy to assemble your cake without having to mention the gender of the baby.

There are also lots of neutral options for baby shower favors, too. Give your guests a candle votive with the baby shower date on the front. Or make baby carriage cookie favors with green or yellow icing, tie them together with a ribbon with the date of the shower and possibly the names of the parents on it.

When it comes time for gift-giving choose only gender neutral colors, or the colors of the baby’s nursery. Ask the parents to make a gift registry so you can purchase what they would like to receive. There are plenty of clothes, toys, blankets or bed and bath items that are gender neutral.