"A wonderful spread, fabulous friends, sunshine, great conversation, and some lounging on blankets is obviously the recipe for bringing on labor," says Dee Purdy of She Had Us At Hello. She should know, because an hour after returning home from the July baby shower picnic her friends threw in London's Holland Park, her contractions started:
Photographs via She Had Us At Hello.
Above: A sunny afternoon, a shady spot under a tree, and picnic blankets spread on the grass. For more of Dee's photos, see She Had Us At Hello.
Above: Simple arrangements of baby's breath, roses, and poppies in clear glass jars.
Above: The picnic menu leans heavily toward finger foods: cheese and crackers, grapes, prosciutto, and olives.
Above: More jam jar bouquets.
Above: A bunting made of colorful paper streamers tied to a tree.
Above: "An hour after we got home, my contractions had started and by midnight we had bathed Limi, put her to bed, repacked the hospital bag, pumped up the Swiss ball...and were heading into the hospital," says Dee.
Above: Congratulations, it's a girl!