Give Them Something They're Not Expecting When You're Expecting

Your Impending Sproglet

Baby showers are so passé. Liven up the results of your ultrasound scan in a far more exciting way. Why give a straight answer to loved ones when you can plan a party to reveal the secret to guests who are bursting with anticipation instead? Announce the gender of your impending sproglet with a bang. Showers of colorful paper proclaim whether a boy or girl is on the way at your gender reveal party, giving guests the thrilling news they've been waiting to hear in the most exciting way possible. Confetti cannons spraying pieces of paper in blue or pink make it instantly obvious whether you are expecting a sister or a mister.

The Big Reveal

Plan your big reveal around a party that incorporates both pink and blue to keep your loved ones guessing until the very end. You can pick a theme for your party based on your interests. For example, cowboys and cowgirls, quarterbacks and cheerleaders or knights and princesses. You can also set up a selfie booth with backgrounds in both pink and blue. Guests can take turns posing for photos with the expectant mom-to-be in front of the color they think the baby's gender will be.

What's Pink and Blue and Baby All Over?

Decorate with pink and blue lights or balloons, offer refreshments like cookies or cupcakes that echo these pastel shades and let your guests square off by taking sides with either Team Pink or Team Blue. You can include jars of pink and blue bubble gum balls, pretzels covered in white chocolate with either blue or pink coloring and offer blue and pink ice cream to go with your pastel-colored cake. Have everyone fill out a secret ballot choosing whether it will be a boy or girl, or let people vote with their drink choice by providing both blue and pink punch options. You can also have guests wear their best guess by arriving at the party attired in either pink or blue.

Baby Music?

Don't forget the music for your party. Include bands or songs on your party dance playlist that mention the relevant colors, with bands like Pink Floyd or Blue Oyster Cult and songs like Pink Moon or Blue Suede Shoes. Make a game out of movie titles by giving partygoers relevant quotes from lists of films with colors in the title like Pretty in Pink or The Blues Brothers and having them guess which movie the quotes are from.

Candy Games

While you're waiting for the announcement, entertain guests with a number of fun, baby-themed games, like setting up a baby food taste test with the labels covered so that guests have to sample the contents and write down their guesses. The guest with the most correct answers can win a prize. Fill up a baby bottle with blue and pink candies, then have guests write their best guess for the number of candies inside. The winner with the closest guess keeps the candy-filled bottle.

Diaper Dexterity

Another entertaining game is the blindfolded diaper change challenge, where each guest gets a turn wearing the blindfold while trying to put a diaper on a stuffed animal or doll correctly. Place a handful of colored candy sprinkles in the diaper to make it more challenging, and judge the winner as the guest who spilled the least amount of sprinkles. Give the winner a special prize for their dexterity.

Baby Pong

Set up a ping pong table and play a version of beer pong using cups full of either blue or pink punch. Alternatively, you can set up a beanbag toss with blue and pink beanbags and label the holes as either "boy" or "girl." Let your artistic guests go wild with a set of fabric pens and blank baby bibs. They can design it in any way they want and personalize it further when the gender is finally revealed. You can also give guests two minutes to fill out a list of baby names, one for each gender for each of the letters from A to Z. This is a fun way to generate some baby name ideas, or you can award bonus points to the person who correctly guesses a name you've already chosen.

Unleash the Cannons

When it's finally time for the big reveal, unleash the cannons. Biodegradable confetti will shower from the handheld cannons and fill the air with a dazzling display. Arm each of your guests with one so everyone can join in the fun or let the expectant mother have all the glory with her own unique announcement. Gather everyone on a lawn or in a large room, and play up the drama of the moment by letting guests count down backwards from 10 before setting off the cannons all at once.

Gender reveal confetti cannons are easy to operate and can be used by older children as well as adults. Hold the cannon firmly in two hands, with one on the upper part of the tube and one on the base. Then simply twist the base in the direction of the arrows to release a spray of colorful paper into the air. The effect is spectacular, with the confetti lingering in the air before floating softly to the ground. There's also no need to clean up afterwards if you release them outside, since their contents are fully biodegradable tissue paper and won't harm your lawn.

Share Your Memories

Anticipating the birth of a child is such an exciting time that you might as well take every opportunity to celebrate your coming bundle of joy. A nice way to share the day with your child later is to have guests add their hopes, advice, thoughts and wishes on little cards that you gather together in a time capsule to open on your child's birthday. Your gender reveal party will make an amazing memory no matter how elaborate or simple it is. Share your memories of the day with your child by looking through a photo album or watching videos of the special day together. Make sure to time your pictures for the moment the cannons release their confetti for amazing photos of the big reveal that capture the surprised faces of your guests.