Operation Shower and My Hello World Baby Shower Experience

Much like planning a wedding or other meaningful life event, baby showers can be memorable, but they can also be stressful as well. As someone who has attended my fair share of showers for family members as well as some of my closest girlfriends, I can personally say that I’ve seen firsthand how stressed the party planner and guest of honor have become from start to finish.

Now that my husband and I are coming to the end of our pregnancy journey, I’ve had several close friends ask me about shower preferences and just from listening to ideas, I knew it was going to bring on extra stress. As much as I loved baby showers and was excited for my own, I wasn’t looking forward to having a hand in planning the event. In addition to being a military spouse, with IVF medical bills hanging over our heads, our little ones due date looming and recently being diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes, the last thing I wanted to worry about was pulling together a fun and successful baby shower.

This is where Operation Shower came in. Founded in 2007 by LeAnn Morrissey, Operation Shower started out as a sweet and thoughtful gesture intended for four expectant military moms, whose partners were deployed at the time. LeAnn’s idea was simply to send out “baby showers in a box” for these mamas, filled with some of the same thoughtful gifts you’d find at a traditional shower. These boxes were deeply appreciated by the recipients, helping LeAnn to realize the idea was something worth continuing for other expectant military families.

It wasn’t long after that Operation Shower was established and was able to host it’s first unit-wide baby shower located in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. By 2010 Operation Shower had partnered with the PGA Tour and Birdies for the Brave as well as a former first lady, Michelle Obama, and Dr. Jill Biden with Joining Forces. What started out as something small turned into a profoundly thoughtful and helpful organization run by LeAnn and her team, geared towards military families who’re simultaneously juggling the joys of impending parenthood and struggles of deployment.

Hubby Coming Home from Deployment

Over the years, Operation Shower has successfully hosted baby showers for thousands of expectant military families. In 2015, they even got the opportunity to go international and journeyed to Italy! Each of the showers hosted by LeAnn and her incredible team brings gifts of must-have shower & baby items for its attendees while also giving them the opportunity to gather with their fellow military families and celebrate the pending arrival of their little ones!

Information About Operation Shower Event

My husband and I were recently approved to attend one of Operation Showers’ event in the NJ area. The theme of the shower we attended was “Hello World” and was an amazing thing to take part in. Each attending couple was gifted with a goodie box filled to the top with wonderful mama and baby essentials.

Goodies for Everyone

Additionally, a few lucky participant was also selected in a raffle to win goodies. At the end of the day, everyone came home with a car seat, swing, and a bottle gift set from vetted baby brands. Before we left, each family were handed out a pack of diaper & wipes.

Raffled Goodies

Some of What We Came Home With

You never realize just how tough parenthood can be until you see those two pink lines. From pregnancy to motherhood (coming up on our due date!) there are so many magical moments and a lot of excitement, but there are a lot of other factors as well. Stress is a big part of the journey, no matter how easy and relaxed your pregnancy is. Even more for those who had to deal with infertility. This is especially true for military families who have a partner being deployed, which is why Operation Shower was created.

Overall, Operation Shower understands that every pregnant woman looks forward to their baby shower and struggle to do so especially when they are away from family and loved-ones. These showers help take the stress away during a stressful time in the lives of a military couple while also noting how important the traditional event is to each family.

While all of my family is overseas and are far away, the shower literally filled an empty spot in my heart. It was also a great way to connect with other military families facing the same situation my husband and I struggle with. We are genuinely grateful for Operation Shower to filling a need in our lives as well as those of the couples around us!

To learn more about Operation Shower you can visit them online at www.operationshower.org and check them out across social media to find out more about the cause and how you can support them.