Gender Reveal Party

One of the FUNNEST parties that I have ever thrown in my life was our Gender Reveal Party! I honestly don’t think there is a better way to find out what sex the newest member of your family is going to be. Today I thought I would do a little “Throwback Thursday” and throw it back to our Gender Reveal Party. The day we found out our little miracle was a GIRL!

A Gender Reveal Party is a fun way to find out if the baby you are expecting is a boy or girl AND you get to find out the special surprise with all of your friends and family! I wasn’t even pregnant when I originally heard about this idea and I honestly didn’t even know if I would ever have the opportunity to have one. It was a dream that I had and thought about it all of the time, but seemed so far away that I put it to the side.

When we found out we were FINALLY pregnant, I was so excited to have my own Gender Reveal Party! It was actually going to happen! My dream party was going to come true. I decided I would wait to have it in October when all of my family from Hawaii and Utah would be able to make it too. On Monday, August 6th I had a doctor’s appointment. Everything was going well I thought and I assumed the appointment was going to go smoothly. I left the appointment with a lot of mixed emotions though. I had good news and bad news. The good news: THEY SAW THE SEX OF THE BABY! Because of the Reveal Party, we had the doctor write the gender on the ultrasound and put it into a sealed envelope. We didn’t peak and we hid it in the glove box in my car so we wouldn’t be tempted to take a look. The bad news: I WAS PUT ON FULL BED REST!

I left with a lot of mixed emotions. I was so excited to know the sex of the baby, but because of the bed rest I was really upset. I decided the one thing that would probably make me feel better and not make me so emotional about laying in my bed for the rest of my life (that is what it felt like) I wanted to find out the sex IMMEDIATELY! I couldn’t wait until October like I originally had planned. As much as I wanted my whole family there, I figured we could all Skype in and be together that way. With everything that has been happening in the pregnancy, I thought it would be really nice to know the sex so I could start shopping and looking at cute things! {online of course ;)}

I told Tyson we were just going to open the envelope with all of our families and it would be fine. My dream of having the Reveal Party was not realistic in my eyes. I was on bed rest and I really couldn’t do much. That was when Tyson spoke up. He told me that I was crazy! He reminded me that I had been looking forward to the Gender Reveal Party for SUCH a long time and this was my chance to do it.  We went back and forth because I was very stubborn about the situation. I told him I wanted to “go BIG or not do it at all.” I had plans for us to invite everyone we know and to go all out on decor and games and make it the biggest party of the year! I wanted it to be a huge success and I knew I couldn’t make it that way anymore with my condition. He understood I wouldn’t be able to do much, but HE VOLUNTEERED to take charge. (Is he NOT the best?!) He took charge and did his thing. He went to SEVERAL stores every single night after work, buying crafts, decor and food. He contacted his mom who offered her home for the party. And we decided we would just do a small party with our family and a few families from our ward {group at church} who had been so helpful while I had been on bed rest.

I made an invitation and emailed them out on Tuesday. The invitation stated to be sure to wear a BLUE or PINK shirt, depending on their votes if they thought we were having a boy or girl!

Tyson and my mother in law did an amazing job with the decorations! We had an ice cream bar with cake pops and candy.

I was seriously SO shocked. The whole time on my blog and scrapbook prior to that moment I had been calling HER a HIM! I was so excited and had secretly been hoping for a girl. I actually wrote, “I just feel like girls are so cute and you can dress them up SO fun! You better believe this girl is going to be all dolled up in her necklaces and bracelets. I convinced myself that it was a boy, so it is hard to get that out of my mind! I am still in shock and I still cry when I think about it.”

I was so grateful for all our family and friends who were able to be in town and support us on this special day. We were so lucky to have my parents in Hawaii, brother Kyle and his family in Utah and our friends Katie and Moose in Texas on Skype. Unfortunately, the network died (overload on the internet!) BUT luckily they were there in spirit for a minute. 🙂 I was sad that they all couldn’t make it, but was so grateful for modern technology!!

I am SO grateful that Tyson and my mother in-law were able to help this party go down. Without them, I would have opened up the envelope all by myself and not have had the party of my dreams. It was so nice to get out of the house, even though all I did at the party was sit on the couch. The party may have been smaller than I wanted and I may have not been able to be a fun hostess like I had planned, but Tyson MADE the party happen! He knew it was something that was important to me, so he ran with it. Thank you Tyson and Shelly! You guys made me so happy!

“I can NOT wait to be a mom. I can NOT wait for girls nights, sleepovers, manicures, pedicures, jewelry, barbies, headbands, flowers, shopping, and having a little angel in our home, because of this little girl. She is truly our miracle baby and we are so grateful for the happiness she has already brought into our lives!” written on http://www.tysanddani.blogspot.com

Danielle is the owner of Today's the Best Day. She strives to provide creative and uplifting content in order to enrich the parenting experience for women everywhere. Danielle hopes to help you and your family to make every day the best day!