Nora Kay's Gender Reveal Party

The one thing we knew for sure when we found out we were pregnant with Baby #2, is that we DEFINITELY wanted to have a gender reveal party.  We had such a blast throwing this party when we found out Elyse was a girl, and of course we couldn't treat #2 any differently...yet, anyway! 

 

And just let me remind you...NO ONE knew the gender of Baby #2, except our two ultrasound techs, the cake vendor, and the confetti balloon vendor from Etsy.  Hubby & I wanted to be surprised with everyone else! 

 

For various reasons, we ended up having to schedule our party for the same day as our scheduled anatomy scan with my OB's office.  This was originally going to cause a few logistical problems, but those were quickly resolved when a good friend volunteered to do an early scan...nearly 2 weeks before the actual party!  She made the phone calls to the cake lady, and also to our confetti balloon vendor...and everything was set!   

Invite by EmandBeaPaperie via Etsy

 

Hubby & I were both off work the afternoon of our anatomy scan, and that was seriously the fastest OB appointment ever...which also resulted in the LONGEST afternoon ever.  The party didn't start until 7, and the anticipation was killing us! 

 

One of the problems with having so much family and so many friends nearby?  Even a "small" party becomes a little large REALLY fast!  I think we ended up with 50+ people at our home to celebrate Baby Layman #2!  So blessed to have so much support and encouragement surrounding us each day of our lives!  

Cake by StarCakes

For the most part I kept the party decorations and planning pretty simple.  We only served cake, fruit, and punch and a lot of the decorations I had on hand already from other parties.  My mom and I did pick up some blue/pink polka dot balloons & coordinating paper goods from Party City, some paper straws & the pink table runner from Hobby Lobby, and the He/She printable came from Krista @ Grateful Imperfections.  I made blue & pink punch (drink containers from Sam's Club and borrowed from my SIL).  And that was pretty much it! 

With Elyse's gender reveal, we did the whole cake thing with the baker making us a pink cake to cut in to.  This time around we wanted to do something a little different, but we also tied in the cake color as well.  Hubby & I tossed around several ideas, and then I happened upon this giant confetti balloon from The Gender Reveal on Etsy.  This sounded like such a great idea...and honestly, it worked perfectly! 

This is about the time that my truly color-blind husband looks at me and says..."It is pink, right?"  There were a few metallic pieces of confetti that truly did look a little blue...I think he just wanted to make sure we were all celebrating a Baby Girl together! 

 I had asked everyone who came to dress in the appropriate color, and as you can see...the blue team definitely was in the majority...

But the pink team came away victorious!  

After the big reveal, we headed inside to cut the cake...which resulted in the first anxiety of the night...what if the cake and the balloon didn't match?!?  ha! 

But nothing to be worried about...the cake was definitely pink inside!

And the second anxiety came when I had to compare the pink confetti & the pink cake...to the ultrasound photo sealed in an envelope from just a few hours earlier!  But again, nothing to be worried about...because It's a Girl!  

 

Hubby, Elyse, & I are so incredibly blessed to have so many nearby family & friends who were willing to take time out of their busy schedules to come celebrate Baby Layman #2.  

 Our house was full of love and laughter and children running inside & out...and my heart was overflowing. 

 

Hubby & I honestly couldn't be more happy to be welcoming another precious baby girl into our family...bring on the pink, the ruffles, and the lace!   

 

*all photos, except top selfie, taken by our good friend Tyler Wilson of FourTen Photography