10 sweet ways to tell people you're expecting

There is something very special about the little early secret.

The first weeks, when only you know. When the world outside carries on as usual, while inside you a whole new chapter has already begun. Perhaps you walk around with a little permanent smile on your lips without anyone understanding why. Perhaps it still feels unreal. Perhaps you check the app every day to see whether baby is now the size of a blueberry or a lime.

At some point the moment comes when the news is to be shared.

With grandparents. With siblings. With friends. With those who are going to love the little person long before they meet them.

And how do you tell them that you're expecting?

Of course there is no right or wrong way. Some say it straight out over a cup of coffee. Others plan a little surprise. Some want to create a memory that can be looked back on for a long time after baby is born.

If you too dream of making a little extra of telling the news, we have gathered 10 sweet ways to tell people you're expecting here.

1. Make your own ceramic cup with a reveal at the bottom

If you would like to do a reveal that is creative, personal and fun, you can go all in and glaze your own ceramics.

For example, make a cup for grandma or grandad, and write the new title on the bottom of the cup. Invite them for coffee, pour, and then quietly wait for the cup to be emptied.

Because when “grandad” suddenly appears at the bottom of the coffee cup, there is a fairly good chance that the last sip goes down the wrong way.

In the good way, of course.

The lovely thing about this idea is that the cup is not just a reveal. It becomes a memory. A little thing that can stand in the cupboard for many years and remind them of the moment when everything changed.

2. A cake box with “Something sweet is on its way”

This idea is simple, sweet and rather brilliant.

Buy a cake, a box of cookies, chocolate marshmallow treats or something else sweet, and tape the scan picture to the inside of the lid. Write “Something sweet is on its way” next to the picture.

When the recipient opens the box, they first spot the sweet treat. And then the even sweeter news.

It doesn't take much preparation, but the surprise can be really lovely. Especially because the news arrives in a completely ordinary moment. The cake was just about to be cut, but suddenly everyone has tears in their eyes.

The surprise didn't just put something sweet on the plate, but something sweet in the heart too.

3. Christmas baubles with “grandma”, “grandad”, “auntie” and so on.

If you are going to share the news in the run-up to Christmas, a personalised Christmas bauble is a really sweet way to do it.

Have “grandma”, “grandad”, “auntie” or another new title written on a Christmas bauble, and give it as a little gift. When it is unwrapped, the recipient may realise straight away. Or it may take a few seconds.

You can also be really cheeky and simply hang the baubles on the tree without mentioning anything. The wait is almost unbearable, but once they are discovered, I can almost guarantee cheers and tears.

The best thing about this idea is that the bauble can be saved and hung on the tree year after year. It becomes not just a way of telling the news, but a little Christmas tradition that starts even before baby has come into the world.

4. The coffee cup with the new title

A cup saying “world's best grandad”, “grandma” or similar is a classic for a reason.

It is easy, sweet and straightforward. And there is something lovely about giving a gift that can be used again and again in everyday life.

Surely the cup will become their new favourite cup to drink coffee from?

5. A letter from baby

A little letter from baby can be a very touching way of telling the news.

Write it as if it is baby themselves sending a greeting:

“Dear grandma and grandad.
I'm not very big yet, but I'm already looking forward to meeting you.”

Or:

“Hello grandma.
I'm lying right in here, growing ready. See you in the summer.”

It doesn't have to be long. In fact, it is often the short, simple words that hit hardest.

The letter can be put in an envelope, given together with a scan picture, or hidden in a little gift. It is a lovely idea because it makes baby a little voice in the family right from the beginning.

And there is something special about reading the first words from someone you haven't met yet, but already love.

6. A children's book as a gift

A children's book is a beautiful and simple way of telling people that a baby is on the way.

Choose a book you love yourselves, or a classic that grandparents, aunties or other close family members can read aloud one day. Write a little greeting in the book:

“Keep this for me. I look forward to hearing your voice.”

Or:

“You're going to read this book to me when I arrive.”

The lovely thing about a children's book is that it points ahead to all the little moments that await. Cuddle time. Reading aloud. Sleepovers.

The news is not just: “We're expecting.”

It is also: “You will have a place in the child's life.”

And that is perhaps one of the loveliest things of all.

7. An extra place setting at the dinner table

If you invite the family for dinner, you can lay the table with one extra place setting.

A little plate. A little napkin. Perhaps a place card saying “Baby” or “Arriving in October”.

Then all you have to do is wait for someone to notice.

This idea is sweet because it is simple and a little cinematic. You don't need to say much. The news sits there in the middle of the table waiting to be discovered.

And when someone asks: “Who is the extra place for?”
Then you have your moment.

It can be a lovely way of telling the news, especially if you would like to gather the family and let them experience it together.

8. Let the big brother or big sister reveal it

If you already have a child, letting the future big brother or big sister help share the news can be one of the sweetest things.

It could be with a T-shirt saying “big brother” or “big sister”. It could be a drawing, a little card or a picture where the child is holding a scan picture.

You can also let your child give the grandparents a gift or say it in their own words, if they are old enough.

Whether your child fully understands the meaning yet depends on their age, of course. But that doesn't make the moment any less lovely.

There is something special about watching the family discover that it is not just a baby that is coming. There is also a new role coming for the child who is already here.

One little one is growing big.
And a new little one is on the way.

9. A calendar with the due date marked

A simple and lovely idea is to give a calendar with the due date marked.

Draw a little heart around the date, and write for example:

“Save this day.”

“We can't wait to meet you.”

Or

“You're being promoted to grandad”.

It is a lovely and beautiful way of telling the news, because it makes the wait concrete. There is a date. A little point in the future when everything will be different.

10. A little teddy with a card

A teddy can be a really sweet way of telling the news.

Give a little teddy together with a card saying:

“Will you look after me until baby arrives?”

It is a soft and loving idea that suits especially well if you would like to give something that can be kept for baby. The teddy can perhaps sit on a shelf while you wait and later become part of the child's little world.

It doesn't have to be big or expensive. It can simply be a little teddy, chosen with love, that carries very big news.

When the news is to be shared

However you choose to tell people you're expecting, remember that it doesn't have to be big to be meaningful.

It can be simple. It can be fun. It can be a little awkward if someone doesn't get the hint straight away. It happens. Even to the best of us.

The most important thing is that it feels right for you.

Because in reality, it isn't the way the news is told that matters most. It is everything the news holds; that a little person is on the way.

With love,
Sara