Nina’s been pregnant for 8.25 months so it was high time to have a baby shower. I don’t want to say how long it’s been since I’ve attended one, and I think it’s been three times longer since I hosted such an event. But she’s my youngest best friend and my next door neighbor so it made sense.
In the U.S. there’s every possible gimmick available to decorate for a party. I wouldn’t be surprised to find a baby shower kit complete with storks and tiny white diapers with miniature safety pins, rattles, giant pacifiers…? But this is Bali. The Balinese culture is rich with celebrations and ceremonies, but they don’t have baby showers, therefore they don’t have baby baubles, doodads, or trinkets.
I scoured the massive Delta Dewata on one end of town and the equally enormous Bintang Supermarket on the other to see what I could glean from the paper products, arts and crafts aisle, tourist gizmos, and whatnot. The first time out was a bust. I was going to have to be creative.
“Ketut, could you buy flowers and make two big arrangements for Nina’s party?” Bali does have flowers.
“Oh no. Not buy. Cut-cut no problem. What you want?”
“I want red, pink, and white colors. It’s okay, you can buy them.”
“Maybe I borrow.”
“Borrow flowers? Where?”
His answer would definitely incriminate him so the source of the borrowed flowers will remain a mystery. But he augment the heisted blooms with two dozen purchased stems of the sinfully fragrant bunga sedap malam (delicious night flower) that emits the most powerful scent after dark.
The shower was three days away and the time had come to get serious. Balloons are universal but the colors they come in are not. I wanted baby girl hues, pinks, lavenders, and splashes of rose. Bintang Supermarket had pepto bismal and fire engine. Pass. In the Delta Dewata I found an enormous bag of the most hideous shades of mud, spruce, beige, and dusty navy. But hidden in the same bag among those eyesores were exactly the colors I wanted. I grabbed the package and ran. On the way to the cashier a flowery painted offering basket caught my eye, the perfect alternative to a box and gift wrap.
The house is ready for guests with bunga sedap malam, and the colorful offering basket.
After stopping on the way home to order a cheesecake at Cafe Wayan, I conferred with Ketut regarding a shower lunch. He suggested lumpia, satays with peanut sauce, steamed mixed vegetables with onion and garlic sambal, and rice. Lovely.
I ordered it with strawberries…they got the color right…!
No self-respecting baby shower is complete without games, even I know that! Again at a loss, I Googled baby shower games. The internet yielded a dizzying feast of choices.
So today from 1:00 – 5:00, Nina and friends celebrated the imminent arrival of the newest member of their family, and judging from the constant babble punctuated by peals of laughter, I’d say a good time was had by all!
writing for self-discovery 
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