The weekend before NYC went into official quarantine back in March of this year, we were lucky enough to get our family together for a gender reveal celebration. We kept our pregnancy under wraps for a good 15 weeks and didn’t do our gender reveal until 20 weeks so it was super exciting to share the news in person and show off my teeny tiny (what I thought was a) bump.
In Korea, expecting parents will nickname their baby bump, referred to as a 태명 “Tae•myung.” Usually, parents go with names that are meaningful for the future of their child like 튼튼이 to wish that the baby grow healthy & strong, or 사랑이 to be loved/lovely, or 대박이 to be an amazing success. Us… we’re just weird and decided to name our baby 봉봉이- or Blobby in English - literally a floating blob because that’s all I could see at our first ultrasound.
*Actual footage of me at our 1st doctor’s appointment:
Party Prep/Decor:
Our doctor wrote down Baby Hu’s gender in an envelope and we had our cousin safe keep it until the party. She was our secret coordinator & ordered us confetti canons & a BEAUTIFUL cake for the reveal.
We kept the decor traditional with white, pink & blue theme:
- Easiest one & done Gender Reveal pack from Amazon
- White balloons
- Helium Tank & Balloon Weights
- Dollar Shop Boy or Girl Cups & Napkins
*Supplemented with things we already had at home: Frames, Mason Jars, Calendar Blocks, Twinkle Lights, Onesies, Little Vases, Rubber Duckies, Drink Tins, Punch Dispenser
Themed Snacks:
- Colored Hershey’s Bars
- Pink Lemonade + Blue Fanta (We couldn’t find the Blue Hawaiian Punch!)
- Pamplemousse & Pure LaCroix
Simple Activities:
- Voting station: We created one with paint chips and holiday photos from our Lisbon trip.
- Photo Booth + props
- Guess Who? Mommy or Daddy - So many fun versions online you can simply google & print off!
- Telephone Charades: We played with 2 teams (one with Jon as captain & one with me as captain). Took turns acting out baby related activities. Ex) Giving Baby a Bath, Taking Photos of Baby, Checking Baby’s Temperature, Water Breaking
We’re having a… BOY!!!
Honestly, I was 80% sure we were having a boy based on the 3D ultrasound scan we had earlier that week. He had his little fist up in a boxing position and has been constantly kicking and punching me since he could squirm!
As exciting a time this pregnancy journey has been, this time has also been a sobering reminder of the importance of good health and social courtesy. Due to COVID concerns, we had a few high risk aunties, uncles, & cousins who weren’t able to physically be present with us. Jon’s parents couldn’t make it out to NYC from Arizona either so we facetimed them in for the big reveal. We have still not been able to see them. :(
I can’t believe this was over 4 months ago. Today, we are 9 days away from 봉봉 Blobby’s due date! Come out, come out, wherever you are! We are ready for you little one.
Love, Umma MH