We’re having a baby!
March 1st, 2009 by Jenni Betts Deming
Julia Cunningham still drinks milk from the glasses her mom decorated to announce her pregnancy.
Cheers to You
After years of being told by doctors she’d never be able to have more children, Alissa Cunningham of Arlington got the surprise of her life.
She was pregnant.
Stirring with excitement, Alissa kept the joyous secret from her husband, Bill, and children, Lori and Will, as she feverishly thought up clever ways to share the news.
“While the other children were at school, I went to Hobby Lobby,” says Alissa, her plan growing like the miracle inside of her. “I saw some pretty decorated glasses and that’s when it hit me — the way I would tell them all about our news. I grabbed a lot of letter stickers in pink and blue and headed home.”
Alissa arranged for a small family dinner that evening, and at the end of the meal, nonchalantly went into the kitchen to retrieve a “special” dessert. Along with a tray of gooey brownies, Alissa emerged with ribbon-and-sticker-coated champagne flutes full of milk, which read “boy” and “girl.”
“My family sat there looking at the glasses for what seemed [like] an hour,” she says. “Finally, my husband, Bill, looked at me and said, ‘Really?’ I nodded yes and everyone started crying and cheering.”
Six years later, “baby” Julia still drinks milk from those special glasses while Mom tells the story of the day she was announced. Julia calls the flutes her “story glasses.”
Brothers Tucker (left) and Noah (right) Gurney with the puzzling baby items their parents hid for a scavenger hunt in the den.
Scavenger Hunt
When they learned they’d been blessed with a third child, parents Matt and Jennifer Gurney of Winchester, Kentucky, began conjuring up ways to break the news to their two preschool-aged sons.
“We wanted to tell our boys first, before any other family or friends, but considering their ages, we knew we had to come up with a game-like way to share it,” says Matt. Their solution? A baby-themed scavenger hunt.
While Jennifer held the video camera, Matt instructed 3-year-old Noah and 1-year-old Tucker to find objects not normally housed in the den. The enterprising young brothers soon uncovered strange clues such as a baby tub, bibs, a onesie, and a bottle.
The camera was rolling as Tucker began bouncing up and down, overjoyed that Santa had arrived with a bundle of new presents for him. He was especially thankful for his old friend Mr. Bottle. Big brother Noah, on the other hand, quickly figured out something was growing inside Mommy’s belly after wondering aloud if Tucker could fit inside the miniature tub.
Jennifer later posted the video on her Facebook page to let friends know of the baby-in-waiting.
“By the time both of us got to work that morning, the news was quickly spreading,” she says. “Everyone loved the creative nature [of the video]. Many people said they watched it over and over.”
Baby No. 3 is expected to arrive mid-September. Until then, Tucker will be keeping the bottle warm and Noah’s decided it should be a girl, since the family already has a “toddler boy.”
Holly Lunsford surprised her husband, Trey, and Dr. Claudia Moise with “Coach” and “Catcher” hats for their roles in the delivery process
Catching On
During a seemingly normal family barbecue at their Southaven home in the fall of 2007, Holly and Trey Lunsford decided to surprise their guests by celebrating Christmas ahead of schedule. The couple distributed presents and then followed up with a birthday cake, of sorts.
Once opened, the unexpected gifts revealed bottles and infant-sized bibs which read, “I love my grandma/grandpa.” The custom-made cake showcased a stork with a frosting-written, “We’re having a baby.” It didn’t take long for the grandparents-to-be to realize Holly and Trey were pregnant with their first child.
“Trey’s mom said ‘A baby!’ and Trey’s dad just gave him a high five and looked so proud,” says Holly, recalling the excited reactions. “My mom was completely shocked and was playfully fussing, ‘I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!’ She and my dad were so happy.”
Eight months later, Holly had another surprise, only this time it was for her husband Trey, a former professional baseball player.
“I thought it would be funny to have hats that said ‘Coach’ [for Trey] as my birthing coach, and ‘Catcher’ for the doctor who would catch the baby,” said Holly. “I saw [the idea] on an old episode of A Baby Story when I was in college. [Once] I married a baseball player, I thought it was even more appropriate. The doctor thought it was hysterical, and said she’d never been given an accessory in the delivery room.”
Fittingly, they named their baby Camden, after the baseball stadium in Baltimore, Camden Yards.
Surprise!
“My father-in-law’s birthday is close to Halloween, so we decided we’d have a pumpkin carving contest on the day we celebrated his birthday. Everyone had their own pumpkin to carve and we each took turns revealing the finished products. When it came Eric’s and my turn, we unveiled our pumpkins together. In one of the pumpkins we had carved a baby in a cradle and on the other written, ‘Coming in May 2009.’ Needless to say, we won the contest.”
— Katie and Eric Bartz, Janesville, Wisc.
“To announce our first boy, Noah, we had a game night with friends and played charades. Our ‘planned’ clue was to act out the movie title, ‘She’s Having a Baby.’ When our team guessed it we began shouting, ‘It’s true, it’s true!’
— Matt and Jennifer Gurney, Winchester, Ky
Tags: Birth Announcements