Wednesday, 30 May 2012
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Gender Reveal Parties: Obsessive? Trendy? Cute Idea?
A friend's pregnancy and upcoming "gender reveal party" has made me aware of this new (?) trend-- a party where all the friends and family are invited to come and witness the parent's discovery of the unborn baby's gender.
When I found out our friend's were planning one, my first reaction was confusion (why would everyone else care?), and a feeling that perhaps these parents-to-be were wrapped up in their own little world a bit much. The baby's gender doesn't affect any of the rest of us, and personally I'm a more private type, so I wouldn't be inclined to share every detail of everything with all my friends and family. So I'm really curious how other people perceive these parties.What do you think? Parents wanting as much attention as possible? Cute trend? Would you plan one for yourself? Why/why not?
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About the Author
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- From: PreMommy@xanga
- Name: PreMommy
- About Me: I am a fairly-newlywed with a heart for kids. I blog about the things I'm thinking about and doing to prepare for becoming a mommy, and welcome readers who are in the same boat, and also experienced parents! We are now expecting our first baby in May 2013!
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Comments (50)
We kinda of planned one. We went out to dinner with our family (the soon to be grandparents, aunts, uncles, and big brother) and revealed by pouring a "mixed drink" (non-alcoholic) from the mixer into a martini glass so everyone could see at the same time. We already knew what we were having but thought it was a fun way to tell everyone that did matter all at once. Now... would I invite all my friends and extended family to some big gender reveal?? No. I thought it was fun to do for our close family, that's about it!
That would be so much fun to do!!
But yeah I agree, who else cares (besides my mom) that we are going to have a baby girl? :p
I'm going to send a mass text to our families when we find out the gender but that's about it. No big party or anything. Just seems too extreme.
We kind of did something like this, but just for family.
We baked cupcakes. We added red food dye to the batter so the cakes were pink. We ied them white so everyone had to bite into the cupcake to know.
It was fun.
Not a party, just a family dinner and we provided a cute dessert.
I like the idea of a special treat to tell your close friends and family the gender of your baby, but a party? That is a bit much, I think. There will be plenty of baby-themed fun involved in the near future.
It seems silly to me, but my friends and family really cared and were excited about John's birth. A special gender reveal party would have been extreme, but they may have liked a card with the ultrasound that showed he was a boy.
when my best bud and his wife found out they were having twins they decided to keep it a secret until their couple's baby shower.. when the cake was cut it was blue and pink and everyone was shocked... a boy and a girl! I thought it was a cute idea but I don't know if I would ever do that... We are foster/adoptive parents so Ive never had a baby shower.. and i think if i ever have a baby im going to be pretty private about it...
I think its a nice idea but then again I think that's something special I'd want to share with my future husband, not find out in a room full of people, even if they are family/friends!
I personally wouldn't do it because I'm shy, but I think it's done in the spirit of fun. Just like any other party. Not necessarily out of egoism.
I think it depends on the personalities of the parents and how open they are with the people in their lives. What else is going on at these parties besides the reveal?... Most people I know announce the gender of their babies on FB, and send out texts or call their closer friends and family members. I think it would be a cute idea to send out cards (photo cards with a picture of the growing belly and maybe a sonogram shot) to family and close friends, but that's about as far as I would go. I was a single mom with my first child, and my mother was in the room when I had my ultrasound. I sent a text to all my close friends, mom contacted family, and everyone else found out through MySpace. with my second and third children, my husband was the only one with me in the room during the ultrasounds, and we called and sent texts to the people we wanted to share the information with. Everyone else found out on FB.
With me it just kind of spread with my friends and family. I scanned a copy of the ultrasound on facebook just to be funny, but yeah - this is a little over-the-top.
I think they are the self-important and haughty. An acquaintance of ours invited us to a "what will it BEE" party. Literally the theme was whether the baby was going to be a boy or a girl *which the couple already knew*. When they cut the cake to "reveal the gender" everyone was supposed to cheer and rah rah ree.
Gag me.
I'm sorry but my world doesn't revolve around the gender of your baby which overall doesn't really matter. Especially since they weren't surprised because they already knew.
Not a fan.
Cute Idea. It's a celebration of the child. I personally would only invite people I felt would care to know and I would wantt to be intimate. I tried to have one with my last child, then my mother spilled the beans to everyone and it just turned into a baby-q. btw it was only about 10 people a few cousins and a close friend.
I am pretty sure the parents are wrapped up in their little world because kids become your world once you have them. As long as they are enjoying it... It sounds just fine.
I'm sorry you feel a little put off by it. I honestly didn't understand the excitement of babies at all until I had my own. Now I gush over newborns and children all the time. I mean I didn't hate kids, I just never got it. lol
Maybe that's how you are? It's cool though not everyone has to gush about it.
i think it's adorable. i'd love to do something like this someday. not a huge party, just close friends and family. i understand how a lot of people wouldn't care. but right now, my sister's pregnant, and i can't wait to find out whether i'm going to have a niece or a nephew.
I started seeing the cakes and all that and thought it would have been real fun to share it that way with my parents and maybe grandparents instead of just calling them up and telling them, but I wouldn't have planed a party. I think it really depends on the personality of the parents though. I do really love the balloons in a box to reveal to brother/sister.
Keep in mind that before the accurate ultra sounds we have today there was a time where everyone close to the parents gathered in the waiting room on the edge of their seat to find out the gender of the newest addition to the family-that was then followed by the "It's a________" cigars and appropriately colored balloons, etc. I feel like it's the same type of thing just celebrated during pregnancy instead of after the actual birth of the child.
All of that being said, it seems like technology has taken away from this tradition and now people are just reinventing it in a more modern way. Announcing the gender obviously makes baby shower gifts easier for your family and yourself in the long run (who wants to stand in a return line with a newborn?). I think the parties are a cute idea, especially if the parents finding out for the first time as well. Updating the tradition is not a bad thing and doesn't make the parents any more wrapped up in their own world then what they should be. It's their child for craps sake!!! They have the right, especially if it's their first.
You're finding out the sex, not the gender.
We didn't find out the sex of our first one... and probably won't for #2 either. I think it's a little excessive, but to each their own! I've seen a lot of people doing the gender reveal at a photo shoot instead of a party; that seems like a happy medium where you have a memorable moment to share with friends/family but don't have to have so much "stuff" associated with it.
I think it is fun. If you don't like it don't go, party poopers! We made cupcakes with a pink center so my family could bite into them. My family was excited to hear the news. I think it depends on the person and how involved their relatives are, then they can decide whether to have a party or not. My best friend found out shortly after me and also had a party/cookout where they announced it. It is an exciting time, especially if it is the first. Just play along!
I'm with a lot of the other commenters - I wouldn't make a whole big party out of it, AND I would only include my family members/very close friends bc they're the only ones who are going to care. I'd do like someone else suggested and just invite them for a nice dinner with a surprise dessert/treat/drink/party favor to reveal the gender. PLUS, I would very decidedly know beforehand, I would never let everyone else be witness to me finding out for the first time.
Also agree with @MistyEyes22@xanga ; I never gushed about babies until I got pregnant. It's truly something that hormones do to your brain. I even got a little irritated by pregnant ladies before I was ever pregnant, bc after a certain point, their baby obsession got annoying. I could only take so much pregnancy/baby conversation before I was ready to gag. But once you're pregnant and/or have your own kids, it's like your brain chemistry changes and you're really into all that stuff. I guess this may not happen to everyone, but it did to me and lots of people I know. It was shocking to me.
So anyway...that's my 2 cents' worth! :) But in the end, people can do whatever they want.
I think it's a fun way to tell your friends and family the sex. A lot of them DO care, if they like you enough.
Well my sister is pregnant right now with her 2nd child. They did not find out the gender either time and we still don't know the gender of the current baby since it's not due for 5 more weeks! But I just planned her baby shower and we talked about how fun it could have been to do a gender reveal party. For example, you could have your OB write it down in an envelope and then give it to a baker to bake something filled with pink or blue, or to give it to a place that does balloons and have them fill a box with pink or blue balloons... something like that.
I think its a fun idea and not over the top, esp if you incorporate it into another event like a baby shower or a family dinner, like one of the comments above mentioned. : )
@MistyEyes22@xanga - I actually am a gusher! I LOVE babies! But I don't love people who use them to get attention for themselves, know what I mean?
I'm really enjoying getting some other perceptions-- thanks everyone for taking a minute to share!
@lyrra_askavi@xanga- You are correct! Whoops! Neither myself or the editors caught that, so oh well.
It seems like the running theme with responses is "family." Most of you that did something to reveal the sex did it for family. To clarify, this party allegedly is expecting 40 or so people, and the grand total of the parent-to-be's immediate families is less than 10, if you count kids.
Our families would definitely be excited to know the sex, but beyond that, I wouldn't expect extended family or friends to show up dressed in pink or blue to find out the sex of our baby. And I'm still confused what the crowd's reaction is supposed to be. lol
I would so do this! With my friends we can't wait to find out what everyone's having, it's a big deal for us lol.
@sarahsmurfette@xanga - i felt the same way.. i loved the way my friend and his wife did it tho.. No one knew except her midwife and the good friend who made the cake.. so even mommy and daddy got the surprise of boy/girl twins. =)