REVEAL-THE-GENDER PARTY

SPOILER ALERT:  If you're one of our few friends, relatives and loved ones who do not wish to know my bun's gender until it comes out of the oven, then STOP right now, don't scroll down further, and close your browser or tab.  I really didn't want this to sound too showbiz, but yeah, I'm compelled to give out this warning for the sake of those who want it to be a surprise ☻

I had my 19-week OB check-up on the first week of October.  Vince and I were both excited for that appointment because I was also scheduled for my second ultrasound that time.  Some of our relatives and even my previous OB in Pennsylvania kind of dissuaded us into finding out the baby's gender before birth especially that it's our first child.  I understand that some expectant parents prefer not to foreknow the baby's gender for the element of surprise and anticipation, however, Vince and I prefer otherwise.  We feel that the thrill and excitement is going to be there regardless, so might as well know beforehand and spare ourselves from guessing and shopping the wrong color of baby clothes and items ;)

Coincidentally, a couple of days before my scheduled check-up, while surfing the Internet, I came across this very cool idea of "cutting the cake" and "gender reveal" party.  Coincidentally again, about a week before my check-up, we had pre-planned to hold a potluck at home with a couple of close friends the day after my appointment.  Talking about hitting two birds with one stone, we called for an instant reveal-the-gender potluck.  Hehe!

Basically, what Vince and I did during my OB appointment is that we told the sonologist that we'd like to know the baby's gender but we asked her not to disclose it to us but write it on a piece of paper instead.  We briefly told her about our plan of holding a reveal-the-gender party, and the sonologist was quick to catch on.  When it was time to check the baby's gender, she turned off the huge monitor and even asked Vince to turn his head away from the screen.  When all was done, she gave us three sealed envelopes:  1) "Guess" envelop which contained the snapshot of the baby's gender but without the definite answer; 2) "Answer" envelop which contained the snapshot of the baby's gender and with definite answer; and 3) "Baker" envelop which is similar to the "answer" envelope.

When we got home after the appointment, I called a local bake shop last minute before they closed.  I was glad that they agreed to bake a "gender cake" for us on short notice!  I explained that I really wouldn't mind if it's just a regular cake as long as there's something inside the cake such as a cake topper or a toy or even a regular icing that would indicate the baby's gender (pink for girl and blue for boy) when we cut the cake.  Vince then drove to the bake shop and gave the baker the sealed "baker" envelop.  I had texted my friends coming over for the potluck to wear blue or pink depending on their guess of the baby's gender.  Vince and I were excited to find out our baby's gender but we both had the patience and self-control to wait and hold off in opening the envelop until the following day.

So the day after my appointment, here's what happened on our REVEAL-THE-GENDER party:

Team Girl - KM and Erwin
Team Boy - Vince and Tin

Fiesta for Four plus One
Beef stroganoff, Pork sinigang, Laing, Bacon-wrapped asparagus, Green mangoes with bagoong, Jackfruit, and Chocolate caramel cake

This was originally a plain cake.  I whipped a batch of buttercream icing and quickly decorated the cake before the potluck.  The flowers were toppers I made back in my Wilton cake decorating lesson days.

The envelopes that contained the ultrasound snapshots.  We took turns in guessing the baby's gender based on the snapshot.  The sonologist typed, "It's a little...."

After we all saw the "guess" ultrasound snapshot, we pretty much knew what the gender is.  I cut the cake to confirm the answer.  While Vince looked anxious in anticipation of what icing color we'd see inside, I  was in denial and wishful thinking and praying that the cake would reveal otherwise.  Haha!

Here's how I looked like after seeing the icing inside ...  Noooooooo!!!! LOL.

And obviously Vince was overjoyed!

BLUE!

Undeniable!

Team Boy wins!  Better luck next time, Team Girl ;)

Happiness! ♥♥♥

So that's how we found out that we're having a baby boy ☻  I was glad and thankful that we had a couple of dear friends to celebrate such precious moment with us.  Truly memorable! ♥   Honestly, I had so much fun on my gender reveal party, I couldn't wait to do another one.  I hope it's for a baby girl next time.  LOL!

If you're an expectant parent and is okay with the idea of knowing your baby's gender pre-birth, I suggest you do a gender reveal party ;) It's definitely a much awesome way of finding out your baby's gender than having the sonologist tell you right there and then in the ultrasound room.  As well, this party is not only fun for the ladies but for the guys as well especially for the expectant father.  You could get more participation from friends and loved ones just by simply having them wear at the party which team they're on - BLUE or PINK.  You can find other more cool gender reveal party ideas in the Internet ;)