Baby showers

Remember Rachel’s baby shower in Friends? Naturally it was held at home, in the flat she shared with Monica, with an array of smug mummies on the invitation list. Poor Rachel was so fazed by such alarming gifts as a nappy disposal system and a breast pump that she couldn’t bear to open any more presents. She suddenly realised how little she knew about becoming a new mother.

But that was long ago, before the information superhighway opened up, and when baby showers were still slightly staid affairs. New mums nowadays have a whole world of inspiration and information at their fingertips, with a zillion websites devoted to baby showers, offering ideas of games to play (who fancies blind-tasting baby food out of a disposable nappy?), recipes, themed tableware and, of course, gifts.

Not for you items so workaday as the nappy tub and the breast pump. No, you want something more festive, such as a Jemima Puddleduck champagne nappy cake – a tiered confection of eco nappies tied with ribbon and stuffed with soft toys and a bottle of champers. Baby shower specialists also cleverly focus on pampering mum, so that alongside the sets of darling organic baby clothes and cuddly lambs, there are natural beauty products for nurturing your growing body.

This, however, presumes you’re so Noughties that you’re holding the shower at home. These days, the vogue is to decamp to a luxury hotel or spa.