How we told our family about Baby L

We really wanted to wait until our first ultrasound to announce our pregnancy to everyone, but we quickly realized that we couldn't keep it a secret from everyone for that long. We decided to tell my mom and Jacob's grandparents soon after we found out, but it took us a little while to decide how to tell them. We finally decided to get little gift boxes and put a baby item in each box with a little note from Baby L. After searching like three stores, we finally found items we were happy with! For my mom, we did a little pair of booties and a note that said "Please hold on to my first pair of booties. I will need them when I arrive in May!" And for Jacob's grandparents, we did a little vibrating toy and a note that said "Please hold on to this toy for me in case my parents forget to pack one when I come visit!"

The blue ribbon and tulle were actually left over from our wedding so that was a perk! 

We delivered the box to my mom that weekend and she was in tears before she even opened the card...I knew I should have put that on top! Haha. I wish I had snapped a picture of her reaction, but I forgot (plus she would have been mad at me for taking a picture). She said she had been worried about me because the last few times we had talked on the phone, I had seemed upset. I told her that's what happens when you are trying to keep such a big secret from someone you talk to daily! Haha. 

We then mailed the other box to Arizona and (not so patiently) waited for it to get to his grandparents. We got the delivery notification and kept waiting for his grandma to called but by around 10:00 that night, we finally gave up and fell asleep. About an hour later, I woke Jacob up telling him his phone was ringing. He didn't grab the phone in time, so he called her back...except he was so tired and excited, he called me! Haha. Once he finally got his grandma called, she was so excited and congratulated us.

Telling the rest of the family wasn't quite so easy....

I had ordered cute little iron-on decals from etsy but I never got a tracking number, so I kept emailing the seller. Once a week had passed, without ever hearing back from the seller, I tearfully went to Hobby Lobby and bought iron-on printer paper and spent hours that evening creating a design of my own. It was super cute and I was, once again, excited.

Unfortunately, that excitement was short lived...

What I didn't realize when I purchased the iron-on paper is that it wasn't invisible...it left the white border all around the text. At this point, I went hysterical (we will blame it on the hormones) and all but threw myself on the ground in tears. Jacob, bless is heart, just hugged me and told me he would fix it. Unfortunately, it wasn't fixable. 

At this point, I had spent $10 on the etsy decals I still hadn't received, $10 on shirts, and like $10 on stupid iron-on paper that was useless. $30 may not seem like much, but to a hormonal, disappointed, perfectionist like me, it might as well have been the end of the world! I sat on the couch crying while Jacob browsed Pinterest for new ideas. 

We finally decided we would buy a chalk board for my niece and nephew to hold with the original phrase from the shirts written on it. However, since you can never predict how toddlers will cooperate, we also planned a back up--we would do a cute little box with a ladybug in it (since that's how big Baby L was). So, we both spent our lunch hours the next day at Michaels and Hobby Lobby getting our new supplies and created this: 

Surprisingly, my niece and nephew both cooperated and we didn't end up needing the ladybug boxes, but they were cute at least! 

After filing a complaint with etsy, I finally got a response from the seller and told her I wanted a refund. I agreed to mail her decals back to her if/when they arrived and we parted ways. I still have not received the decals! 

Despite all the tears, drama, and trips to craft stores, our announcements turned out perfect and we were so happy to not be harboring that big secret anymore! 

Next up was our ultrasound and public announcements...