The Big Reveal

Unless you've been living under a rock.... you know that gender reveal parties are all the rage these days. As someone who loves planning parties, I knew the moment I got pregnant that I just had to jump on the gender reveal party bandwagon.

Most of the time the parents-to-be find out what they are having at the same time as all of their party guests. The doctor seals the gender in an envelope and the couple takes it to a bakery, party store etc. to have whatever they are going to use as the reveal made. However, this option wasn't really available to us as we found out the gender of our baby in a non-traditional way. We did a blood test and received a call with the results instead of going into the office and having an ultrasound. We also had a 2 week window in which we could receive the call- which made planning the party difficult. As a result, I ended up getting the call at an inconvenient time to have the party and had to wait 2 weeks to have the big reveal. Believe me.... it was so hard to keep the secret to ourselves that long. I had to be so careful not to give any clues when I talked to anyone about the baby.

We decided to do a box of balloons instead of a cake as our big reveal. We thought it would make for better pictures and everyone at the party would be able to see it at the same time. Luckily, we had a large box (that our stroller/carrier travel system came in). So I just wrapped it in kraft paper and made a question mark out of scrap wrapping paper to make it pretty. Rex (our golden retriever pictured below) was so excited when he saw us come home with all the balloons that morning. I think he thought they were toys for him.

The party decor:

I love banners/signs, but I don't want to pay a lot for them. I find they usually turn out better when you make them yourself. I made the sign below using card stock (left over from a wedding project, ribbon and a printer). It was very easy and I loved the way it looked in the doorway.

Photo taken by Laurence Smith :)

We had a little station by the door where guests had to write their guess and pick up some pink or blue Mardi Gras beads. I had a little framed print out of old wives tales to help them with their decision. Most people choose team pink, but team blue had a good number as well.

Photo taken by Laurence Smith :)

I wanted to have a lot of pink and blue themed food.... but that's harder than you might think. We ended up with pink and blue cupcakes (by Eileen Carter Creations), pink and blue peeps and a pink and blue themed drink station. Everything else was normal party food.

Photo taken by Laurence Smith :)

Photo taken by Laurence Smith

The dessert spread.... yummy. The cookies (from Costco) were the first thing to go!

The drink station... My husband went to Michigan and the "go pink or go blue" with the pink lemonade and Labatt Blue beers was his clever idea.

The main food spread... my helpers Sarah and Dedra are in the background. They came early to help me decorate and prepare food. The party would have fallen apart without them!

The deviled eggs were the first item to go. I've never been a big fan of deviled eggs because of all of the mayonnaise they contain. However, I found this recipe were you use Greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise, making them a super healthy pregnancy-friendly food. People loved them!

The Big Reveal:

About an hour into the party, we gathered everyone outside to watch the reveal. My sister (who lives in England) and Rich's sister (who lives in Florida) were both present via skype. We thought it would be nice to have our moms open the box, since we already knew what it was.

It's a Boy!!!! I think Rex was the most excited when those balloons came out of that box!

The parents to be, photo taken by Laurence Smith :) 

Photo taken by Laurence Smith :)

Rich's Popou (grandfather) is really excited about his first great grandchild. Photo taken by Laurence Smith :)

The littlest guest, enjoying the party festivities. She is excited for the arrival of her playmate this fall! Photo taken by her mother Laurence Smith :)

I think everyone enjoyed the party, for many it was their first gender reveal party. I was one very exhausted pregnant lady when the party was over!

We also had a very young party guest of the canine breed....

Dedra's dog Camp playing with Rex.

Let's just say I wasn't the only one exhausted after the party.

Photo taken by Laurence Smith :)

Until next time...

Tressa