Countdown My Pregnancy Blog

The adventures of pregnancy as told by moms and moms-to-be

Are you the “birth announcement type”?

Posted on July 22nd, 2011. Written by Countdown My Pregnancy.

Are you the “birth announcement type”? I am not… I sometimes wish I was, but I’m not. I love the idea of them, I loved looking through them online when I was pregnant, but I never actually had one made for either of my kids. I’m not sure how some people get their act together enough after giving birth to actually pick a design, get great photographs of the wee one, get together all the birth information, enter it all in (online or by hand for do-it-yourself cards) then address them and send them all… Yikes, I get overwhelmed just thinking about it (and I didn’t just give birth!). If the prospect of all of this doesn’t overwhelm you, then you are the “birth announcement type”!! Congratulations, you will have no problem getting those announcements out “on time”.

Considerations

For the rest of us who cringe at the thought of organizing all of this, here are some things to consider:

First, you need to decide: Is this something you really want to do? Or is it something you feel like you should do? If you truly want to do it then great! If not, that’s ok too! If your family is fairly small, you will likely see most of them shortly after delivery – so do you need to send a card too? If your family is large or spread out across the country (or world) then they may not be able to visit you and the baby, but do you need to send a card or will a mass email with photos attached do? Do what you want – you’re the mom here!

Next you need to decide: Will you purchase them online or purchase them from a store (and fill them out by hand) or hand make your cards? Don’t be a super hero, pick the option that actually appeals to you (not the one you “think” you should do). If you hate crafting, then don’t try and make your own cards! You’ll likely end up with a pile of supplies that never get used and a sense of guilt that you just don’t need.

Decide when do you want to send them out (and if you are ordering cards online or from a store be sure to find out how long it will take for delivery, so you can plan when you need to order)

Do you want to include a photo or photos on the announcement? If so, keep this in mind so after the delivery you can make sure you snap A LOT of pictures, this way at least one or two will turn out great! Or if you want to have professional photos taken, find a photographer before birth and inquire about pricing and booking options.

Preparation

Do as much preparation as you can: (best to do these while you are pregnant, you likely won’t have much time or energy after delivery)

• Select your design or select a few favorites to pick from when the time comes (this is the fun part – but can be time consuming – so start browsing early)
• Decide what information you want to include on the announcement (date of birth, time of birth, baby’s name, weight, length, hospital name etc.)
• If you would like to include a poem or inspirational words think about these now and get as much done before the birth
• Create a list of the people you wish to send a card to – this is a good way to get a count of how many you will need to order/purchase or make
• Once you have a recipient list you can gather addresses and preprint your address labels
• Find your photographer (if you plan to have a photo session)

If you can manage to get as much done before hand the more likely it is they will actually get sent out!

Have a happy and joyful pregnancy!

The birth announcement images in this post are from tinyprints.com. They have hundreds of designs and handy “favorites” tool for keeping track of which you are considering.

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