5 ways Meghan Markle’s baby shower is nothing like yours

If you squint and suspend your disbelief, Meghan Markle’s baby shower seems almost kind of relatable.

Her guests partook in a flower arranging activity, for example—and these days, lots of moms-to-be have traded those embarrassing, poop-themed diaper games for intimate, Pinterest-worthy affairs with more elegant activities.

And Meghan was surrounded by her best friends, which is also typical. Didn't you have your besties on hand for the festivities to shower you with gifts and indulge in a few too many sweets?

But if we're being honest, that's probably where the similarities end. From the location (a five-star hotel) to the guest list (tons of celebs) and the alleged $200,000 bill (footed by Serena Williams!), here are five ways Meghan Markle’s baby shower is in a league of its own:

1. The venue is the largest penthouse in the US

The Duchess of Sussex jetted to New York for the festivities, which took place at The Mark, a super-swank five-star hotel in the Upper East Side. And if that weren’t enough, the venue was the $98,000-per-night penthouse—a five-bedroom, six-bathroom space that’s been deemed the largest of its kind in the country and features sweeping views of Central Park. Yeah, that’s a little different from the party room in your aunt’s building.

2. Famous guests arrived to a sea of flashbulbs

Not that paparazzi are foreign to actresses like Abigail Spencer and Oprah’s bestie Gayle King, but hopefully someone told Meghan’s Northwestern University friends (who were reportedly among the 15 or so guests) to bring a pair of shades in their bags. Those flashes are intense!

3. News outlets around the world got the date wrong

Tatler was the first to break the news that the media had gotten their stories totally wrong. The shower wasn’t on Tuesday (Feb. 19), like everyone had thought, despite the mom-to-be being pictured in a monochromatic black outfit arriving at The Mark (presumably to check out the prep or visit Serena, who posted a snap from her bathroom on Instagram). It actually took place on Wednesday, the final day of her long weekend in the Big Apple, at 12:30 pm. We’d bet no one got the date of your shower wrong, especially the international media…

4. The hosts were no joke

My mother-in-law and her close girlfriends hosted my baby shower, and it was beyond lovely. Meghan’s, on the other hand, was helmed by tennis GOAT (greatest of all time) Serena Williams and internationally celebrated human-rights lawyer (and George Clooney’s other half) Amal Clooney. Serena is said to have picked the venue and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars for the beyond-chic luncheon, with sweet treats by renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Same, same but different?

5. She jetted to NYC on a private jet—and the ride was a gift

No, the mom-to-be didn’t fly coach. Rather, she flew from London to New York in a chartered plane, and Vanity Fair says it belongs to a close pal in Toronto who footed the bill as a shower gift. Friends in high places, much?

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