Two Fun Ways to Tell Family You're Expecting.

Telling our family we were expecting was one of the most exciting parts of this journey so far. We knew that everyone would be excited but were definitely factoring in some of them being very shocked. Shocked, because we got married in July and were announcing this to our immediate family (moms, dads, grandparents) in August- September depending on when we could get some time with them. I thought it would be fun to capture peoples reactions when we told them so we set out to do that with family close by. As for Mike's family, we told them over the phone but their reactions sounded about the same. The initial excitement followed by, "Already?!!". What can I say? Mike and I knew we wanted to start a family right away and are very blessed that God seems to have a very similar timeline.

The two reactions we were able to capture were my mom and my grandparents. We'll start with my mom.

For moms surprise, we planned on meeting her at a restaurant and then telling her there. We had the digital pregnancy test wrapped up pretty well so that she had to dig around a while before getting to it. We were so excited we couldn't even wait to sit down before telling her so we did it right in the restaurant parking lot. Clear to see by her expression, she's pretty stoked to be a grandma and we spent the rest of our lunch chatting and laughing about what's still to come with a new baby in the family. Next up, my grandparents.

Their reactions were priceless. Seriously, it made me one part ecstatic that we had these memories on camera forever and one part sad that we hadn't got to do it with everyone on both sides of the family. For their surprise, we drove down to their home in South Carolina to spend the weekend with them. We got down there pretty late the first night so we waiting till the next morning to share the news. This proved very hard for Mike as he and my Papa stay up chatting late into the night and watching sports every time they are together. I still don't think my Papa has forgiven him for not telling him that night! To announce it we put a newborn onesie and our latest ultrasound in a gift box and had them open it. It was perfect because it was not what they were expecting in the least!

For both parties, the key was the element of surprise. Mike and I had known we were pregnant but didn't let on to anyone at all. We had no mention of babies so it wasn't at the forefront of anyone's mind. Whether it's a onesie or the actual pregnancy test, definitely think about who you're sharing the news with and what would surprise them the most. And don't forget your camera!