By Caroline Miller 

If you're planning on throwing your best friend a baby shower, and you've never done this before, you've come to the right place!

A baby shower is a casual affair and not really one that calls for a lot of formality or protocol, but there are some things that are common to all baby showers and you don't want to be caught on the wrong foot. So read on, and you'll know all there is to know about throwing the perfect shower - from baby gifts to baby shower favors.

A baby shower is thrown usually during the last few months of the pregnancy by close relatives of the mother or her friends. If your friends or sister had already been showered, no problem, you can have another one of your own. It's not uncommon for moms to be to have multiple showers.

It'll make your task a whole lot easier if you can decide on a single baby shower theme and stick to it. Ask the mom to be what she wants about the things she needs for her baby, and build a theme around that. For instance, you could have a theme dedicated to travel - gifts could include strollers, front packs etc. Look into other possible themes based on the mom to be's needs like nursery décor items. This is especially true for a new mom who might be overwhelmed with the number of things to get ready before the baby's arrival. A baby gift basket filled with the essentials she needs is one of the most useful gifts she could receive at this stage.

If you're a friend throwing a shower, invite all her friends and close members of the family. Distant relatives can be avoided. If you're a member of her family, however, make it a point to invite family. You can invite guys too. Earlier, baby showers used to be an exclusively female reserve. These days, guys join in the fun!

You absolutely must invite the father. This was frowned upon earlier, but more fathers these days want to be involved in every aspect of the pregnancy including the shower.

Fortunately, once you have the gift giving and food out of the way, there isn't a whole lot more at a shower to take care of. Include some games to avoid party boredom, and add some festive decorations to the venue and you're all set to throw a terrific baby shower.