Guatemalan Baby Shower

We're only into March and I've already had a chance to experience a lot of firsts this year here in Guatemala. Last week I spent my first birthday here and this past Saturday, March 5th, I experienced my first baby shower in Guatemala. It was put on by both Guatemalans and North Americans, so I am guessing it was probably a good combination of both cultures! It was a lot of fun. One thing that struck me was that when a bunch of women get together, no matter what the culture, they know how to have fun!

It was a surprise party, which is not an easy task in a culture who are laid back about time! Plus the majority of the attendees had to travel a half hour to get there. But we all made it there and the mom-to-be was very surprised!

The shower was in Canilla, where mom-to-be, Rosa, was helping out in a medical clinic. We loaded up the 15 passenger van the home owns with about 18 people, mostly relatives, and headed to the party. It was an amazing sight to see. Those ladies piled out of the van, marched into the house with their goods and had it laid out and ready to go in no time! I was impressed!

Rosa, the very surprised mom-to-be:

We then played several games. It was fun to see this reserved culture "let their hair down". These ladies are funny and know how to have a good time!

Learning how to feed the baby by feeding each other blindfolded:

New mom practicing changing her baby, of course, blindfolded:

And then came the food. And boy did we have food. Every lady who came to the shower brought a dish of some kind, some food and some sweets, to share. And here they put one of each food item on each plate and serve everyone. That resulted in a very full plate of delicious food! No one left there hungry!

The ladies getting the food ready to serve.

Our yummy food consisted of tamales, doblados (also called empanadas), 3 different versions of a Guatemala enchilada. An enchilada here is a small tortilla with the edges curled up and filled who some yummy stuff. One had a noodle mixture, one was carrots and mayonnaise, and the other was ground beef and vegetables. We also had cake, cupcakes, chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate covered pineapple, donuts, watermelon, and chocolate chip cookie bars.


After we ate, Rosa opened her gifts and then it was time to go. I don't know if there was some kind of secret signal or something, but all of a sudden, everyone stood up and started cleaning up and before I knew it, everything was all packed up and ready to go. We once again piled into the van and headed home. It was a great time and I really enjoyed being with these ladies. I am looking forward to getting to know the people more and more as time goes by.