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Whatever happened to the doctor announcing "It's a boy!" or "It's a girl!"? Two trends - earlier gender detection during pregnancy and, of course, social media - have combined to make big, splashy gender reveals a top trend. Here are a few of the ways parents-to-be are sharing their excitement:
1. More and more couples are throwing gender reveal parties to involve their friends and family in the surprise. A fixture at the parties? A gender reveal cake! If you're hosting the party but don't want to ruin your own surprise, ask your OB to write your baby's gender down on a slip of paper and seal it in an envelope. Then hand that envelope to a trusty baking friend - or a professional bakery - and ask them to bake a cake with a hidden pink or blue interior. Gather your friends around to cut the cake and everyone gets a sweet surprise!
2. Take a vote. No, not really - we all know your baby's gender is not a committee decision. But lots of parents are asking their friends and family to vote on their guesses before they announce the "winner" at a party on in a social media post.
3. Gender reveal boxes are all the rage. Fill a box with pink or blue helium balloons - or as a friend to do it, if you don't want to ruin your own surprise - and when you're ready, open it up! Another twist is a pinata filled with pink or blue confetti.
4. For faraway friends that may not be able to attend a gender reveal party, a lot of couples are staging photo ops. You can keep a camera handy while opening your own gender reveal box, or set up a three-step photo sequence - a popular favorite is a photo of you and your partner holding up pink and blue balloons, inflating them both, and then popping one, leaving only the "winner" behind.