Month one
Breaking news new daddy
YOU’VE EITHER BEEN caught by surprise by the news you’re pregnant – or you’ve been tracking your periods like Sherlock Holmes, waiting for lab results, or willing the phone to ring from the adoption agency. And depending on your circumstances, your partner is either hoping for the positive news with you, or is likely to be caught completely off guard. Regardless of the situation, how you share the news will be memorable – so make sure you deliver it in a way he (or she) will never forget. IF YOU’VE BEEN YEARNING FOR GOOD BABY NEWS… If you’re absolutely sure he’ll be delighted to receive good news, you can consider a prank announcement. Here are a few:
PRANK HIM
“I got my best friend’s husband to phone Mpho, pretending to be a call centre agent trying to sell him insurance. Just before he was about to hang up, my friend’s husband managed to say, ‘Now that you’re about to add to your family, would you like to consider upping your life insurance?’ Mpho was like, ‘What?’ At this point, my bestie’s hubby said, ‘I think you better speak to your wife…’ I was standing right there with the positive pregnancy test in my hands. Best prank ever!” – Thembi, Johannesburg WHAT IS IT? Give a “gift”: a jewellery-sized box is intriguing. Is it a watch? Is it a wallet? No, it’s a box with a kidney bean in it, and the note reads: “Our little baby is this big!” SPOON-FEED HIM Literally, engrave a spoon and feed him dessert. SURPRISE! If you’re lost for words, buy (or design and print) a simple card with the pregnancy news. A message such as “You + Me = Three” is perfect, and lets you write your own sweet nothings on the inside of the card. Awww... PHOTOSHOP Make picture-editing tools your friend for some top-notch pranking. If it’s your second pregnancy, take a pic you both love of your eldest, say of her reading a book, and Photoshop a new title onto it – one such as, “I’m going to be a big sister”. Watch for the penny to drop. A JOKE’S A SERIOUS THING… If he can take it, your announcement can be a little off-colour. IF THE PREGNANCY IS A SURPRISE TO BOTH OF YOU… Tread carefully around a big, public revelation. Tell him alone – he may need to cry tears of joy, and could feel put on the spot or embarrassed in front of a group of friends or relatives. PHOTO FINISH Have a photo shoot where you take a photo where each of you is holding a cardboard square with a message written on it, “Merry Christmas”, for example. Stand back to back and let the photographer first take his pic, with him holding up his note. Now turn so you are facing the front. Whip out your secret message (“We’re having a baby!”) and take the pic while saying “Ssshhh!” Develop the pics and watch his face as he realises what you’ve done.
IF THE “BIG REVEAL” ISN’T FOR YOU...
“I picked up the phone to my husband and told him our son was ready to be collected,” says Mark, who now has two sons. “It wasn’t ever going to be the big Pinterest reveal, because we were adopting. But we’ve found hundreds of opportunities since then to mark significant occasions.”
IF THE REACTION FALLS FLAT...
If your man doesn’t react as happily as you had hoped, take heart. He hasn’t had the time to get used to the idea that you have had. He may be afraid of fatherhood and all it entails: financial worries, the responsibility, the need to resolve his emotions around fatherhood. Step back for a few days and allow him to process the news. And above all, remember: hearing about a pregnancy is one minute of your life, but being a parent is forever. YP