When I was pregnant, I read a book about French parenting called Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela Druckerman, and it totally shaped my parenting philosophy. In honor of this French child-rearing style I was hoping to employ with Baby O&O, my girlfriends threw me a perfectly magnifique French-themed baby shower at Indianapolis’s most elegant confectionary and my personal favorite place in the world, a Parisian-inspired bakery called The Cake Bake Shop. 

​Since it was November, the shop was all decked out in their Christmas silver and gold décor, which is nothing short of magical, so very few additional decorations were needed, but of course, the extra French touches the hostesses did add were truly the “icing on the cake,” if you will. 

​Guests mingled over French-pressed coffee in the shop’s special event room, which is easily my favorite space on earth. We had the option to indulge in a slice of pumpkin chocolate cake or funfetti birthday cake, and while we sunk our forks into the rich sugary goodness, the hostesses led everyone in a fun guessing game of baby stats about either Mr. O&O or me from back when we were wee ones. 

​Everyone then showered Baby O&O and me with a plethora of goodies, and I basked in all the amazing love, generosity, and cake. Sticking with the silver and gold color scheme, guests left with a matching tea candle and a full belly. Reflecting back on it, I am so thankful for all the dear women who came to celebrate our sweet little boy and for the 3 very special women who put every last detail together to make my French dream a reality. 

For all the locals reading this who have yet to experience the slices of heaven the Cake Bake Shop adorns their counters with daily, I urge you to stop what you are doing and run there immediately! And for those reading from afar, feel free to follow my Cake Bake visits by keeping tabs on my Cake Bake Pinterest board to see what delicacy I try next.
 
As for the French parenting, I am happy to report that it is going splendidly so far. Baby O&O is taking to his French upbringing like a true Parisian bebe. 

In honor of this very special day, I interrupt this baby shower blog series (appropriately) for a brief look into the reality of a new mom’s first Mother’s Day. While I totally agree with and relate to all of these points (especially #9!), this wise bit of insight actually isn’t mine, but is a fantastic guest post from my dear friend Lisa Graft (for whom I threw the running-themed baby shower), a now-seasoned mama (compared to my 4 months!) to precious and adorable Josie. Take it away, Lisa!

​Last Mother’s Day (my first), I posted this beautiful picture of my daughter and me with the caption, “Doesn’t get any better than this.” 

​And I felt guilty. Like a liar. True, it doesn’t get any better than holding my sweet baby and giggling together, but it does get worse! So, in the spirit of full transparency, here are 10 truths about my short experience in motherhood that I wrote last Mother’s Day that still hold true, even with another year under my belt.

I’ve never been so exhausted – mentally, emotionally, and physically. When I became a mother, the selflessness came instantly to me. The work, then, is to not resent Josie for engendering the selflessness. And to not resent my husband for his learning curve on becoming selfless. And that’s tiring! But, of course, motherhood is amazing on so many levels. I love Josie more than I ever thought I could love a human. I’m enjoying the trial and error part of raising a baby because I’m becoming a very confident mother, and every day, I try to appreciate my tired eyes and full heart.