Jenna Karvunidis is a wife, mom, and a law student according to her website, but she’s more famous as the person who invented gender reveal parties. Karvunidis was a blogger who wrote a post in 2008 with a photograph of a cake. Inside was pink frosting, announcing the upcoming birth of her oldest daughter. Her blog post was featured in The Bump magazine and gender reveal parties were born, exploding on social media. Gender reveals quickly morphed from a straightforward, plain cake with telltale frosting to airplanes pulling banners, dropping confetti, and any other outrageous method you can think of. It didn’t take long for gender reveal parties to go horribly wrong, with some resulting in serious injuries or worse. It has sent many parents-to-be in search of gender reveal alternatives that are both safe and fun.
When you look at the history of these gatherings, it makes sense why alternatives to gender reveal party planning is on the rise. Gender reveals have been the cause of devastating forest fires in both California and Arizona. As the gender reveal craze began to get out of hand, even its inventor started to have a change of heart about its function. Of course, announcing the impending birth of a baby is exciting for the parents, but there are other things you can do that can be just as much fun without the potential for an epic fail. Here are five alternatives to gender reveal parties that aren’t over the top, but let family and friends know a cute bundle of joy is arriving soon.
Name reveal party
Knowing the name of a new baby is pretty thrilling. Instead of focusing on the baby’s sex, have a special party to announce the name of the impending arrival. Invite friends and family over for a name reveal party while asking each person to share their suggestion for the baby’s name. The parents-to-be can read the name suggestions before announcing their final decision. If the parents want to get social media followers involved, post an adorable baby bump photo and encourage social media friends to offer possible names, too. After the name reveal party, post a picture with the decided-upon name.
Name announcement
Much like a save-the-date or a birth announcement, the parents-to-be can send a name or gender announcement in the mail or via email letting family and friends know a boy or girl is on the way. This type of announcement can be standalone or can accompany a baby shower invitation. Create your own stylish name announcements or head to sites like Zazzle that can customize them.
Social media post
To spread the news about a baby girl or boy on the way, social media certainly does the job. Instead of a gender reveal with a video about an action, post the exciting announcement with a cute photo that lets people know a girl or boy will soon be born. If parents don’t want to focus on gender, do a post with a name reveal instead. Fur babies are perfect for this type of post. How cute will pooches or kitties look with a My Little Brother or Sister sign dangling around their furry neck?
Boy or girl?
Well-wishers love to speculate on the gender of the baby, from grandma who swears it’s a girl by the way the mom-to-be is carrying to the neighbor down the street who has correctly predicted the gender of every baby in town. Have a bit of fun by hosting a boy or girl party. Ask each guest to bring a rattle or other small baby toy. Upon arrival, party guests place the rattle or toy into a basket marked boy or girl. When dessert is served, tally up the baskets to see how many guests think the baby will be a boy and how many feel it will be a girl. Once the tallies are in, the parents-to-be can share their big announcement that a baby boy or baby girl is on the way.
Birthstone party
A birthstone is a gem corresponding to the month a person was born. People who were born in January have garnet as a birthstone. For April birthdays, diamonds are a best friend, while May birthdays go green with emeralds. A different way to announce the arrival of a baby is by hosting a birthstone party. Invite all the guests to either wear their birthstone or at the very least the color of their birthstone. Parents-to-be can deck the hall in the color of their baby’s birthstone to let family and friends know when the due date of the baby is. At this point, if they choose the parents-to-be can also announce whether or not the baby is a boy or a girl.
Other gender reveal alternatives
Spending time with family and friends to let them know about this exciting event in your life is an ideal way to make the announcement a new addition is on the way. Here are some additional ways to let people know you’re expecting.
- Pregnancy announcement party
- What’s your zodiac sign party
- Favorite children’s book party
- Stuffed animal party
Jenna Karvunidis’ simple blog post announcing the exciting news she was expecting a daughter triggered a rush of gender reveal parties. Simple turned complicated and sometimes dangerous as parents-to-be tried out doing one another with their gender reveal. Sometimes simple really is best. With these alternatives to a gender reveal party, parents-to-be can still share the exciting news about a baby on the way in a fun way, but without the worry that something will go horribly wrong. Parents not wanting to focus on the baby’s gender can find cute ideas to make the big announcement, too.
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