Baby #4 Gender Reveal!!!

Yesterday was an exciting day!!  In the morning we had our ultrasound to check in on Baby #4 and this time (for the first time ever) find out what gender to expect in February!  Now, being that I am accustomed to and prefer the delivery room surprise (you may recall that finding out the gender in advance was Doug's idea and I let him have this one since it's our last), I felt that if we were going to find out early, then we had to make it an exciting event rather than just find out in the cold, dank ultrasound room.  So, we decided to follow the new trend and have a reveal party!  The plan was that the ultrasound tech was to look for the gender and then write it down on a piece paper, seal it in an envelope and then I was to get that to my friend, Megan, who was in charge of the reveal surprise.  Doug and I really wanted to be surprised with the boys, surrounded by our friends and family and I'm so glad we did it this way.  It was a blast!  Before I get on to the party though, I'll share my favorite picture of Baby Melder #4 from our peek-a-boo yesterday morning.  I think he/she is looking pretty cute!  And it looks like we may have ourselves yet another thumb-sucker!

So, after the ultrasound, I was super excited to have seen my little one, but my stomach was churning and unsettled wondering what the gender reveal would hold.  Which was it?  Boy or girl?  How would the boys respond?  How would I respond?  A little nerve-racking, but definitely exciting!  I was able to get pretty distracted with preparing for our guests for the party.  Cleaning, decorating, cooking, etc.  Here's a glimpse at the finished product.  I was happy with it!

My homemade chocolate cupcakes with homemade chocolate frosting.  I made these the night before and the whole house smelled like chocolatey goodness for 24 hours...it was so hard not to eat one in advance!

Note that the Hymnal on the piano is purposefully turned to, "It is Well with my Soul."

When people arrived they were supposed to don their guess by using a tie or a bow to make a name tag.  It was a big hit, but I ran out of pinks because so many friends were routing for a little girl addition to the family.

My friend Meaghan brought amazing dark chocolates from she and her husband's family chocolate business.  She knows my love of chocolate!!

I saw this cute idea on Pinterest and had these Hershey bars available, so I figured it would make a good favor for our friends!

Before the guests came, we had a few minutes to get some family photos.  So happy that Megan was there early and could grab these as they turned out quite well despite how anxious we all were to get this party started!  You can see the boys have all selected blue name tags and are wearing them like real ties.  Priceless!!

As friends arrived, the smorgasbord of desserts just kept growing, here's a smattering of what was available, but it grew and grew as guests arrived!

My friend Deborah brought the beautiful blue and pink hydrangeas from her own garden.  Lovely!

The party started at 6:30pm and most people arrived right on time and a few shortly after, but everyone was there in plenty of time to enjoy some desserts before the scheduled 7pm reveal!

Well, 7pm passed and we were all enjoying each other's company so much Doug had to pull us all together (adults strewn throughout the first floor and many kids had run upstairs to play on the 3rd).  He had set up a live stream for family members and it started at 7pm, so we had to get out to the backyard and really do this thing!  I was so nervous, but also so excited to have the waiting be over!!  Megan did a great job of the box and balloon job for the big reveal.  And she didn't let on at all about what was in that envelope (she even acted so non-chalant and calm when she came over early to help set up!).  Here it comes...what's it going to be!?!

Before we opened the box, we took a picture of those who were guessing it was a girl...

And those who were guessing it was a boy...

Doug and I loved having all these best buds surrounding us for the big reveal.  They were so into it and invested.  We are so blessed!  For those of you that didn't watch the reveal live, I have a few different videos to share.  Our friend, Nate, took this video with my camera...  Don't forget to guess before you watch!!

So exciting!  Well, I guess you are wondering...what did I want?  It was clear our boys wanted a boy and even Doug had let his preference known with his nametag in blue.  Me, I really do just pray for a healthy baby, but of course I thought through both scenarios of having a girl or having a boy.  It's hard to rank because they are both exciting in their own way, but now that we know I can absolutely say that I felt a rush of relief, utter joy and complete satisfaction when I saw those blue balloons unveiled.  I LOVE being a mom of boys.  I love it in this phase from baby to elementary student, but I look forward to all the adventures the future holds too.  I love the challenge of boys, I love all I've learned and been stretched by in trying to raise boys now and as they grow older into young men.  I'm thrilled to add another boy to this family.  And, also, it means I get to remain queen of my kingdom!  These boys treat me too well to give that position up easily!  Here's a video I got this morning from a friend, you can definitely see that I'm absolutely thrilled to have boy #4!

Ok, so enough of us on video (how do actors and actresses watch themselves?  I can't stand it!).  Here are a few great photos we received after the fact that friends took on their phones. 

This last one is my favorite.  I love the reactions in the background, our joy and then Penn's complete confusion and wonderment at the craziness!

Well, that's about it!  Pretty exciting stuff!  It was a great night of being with the community here that cares for us and finding out the news, sharing the surprise with the boys, our friends and our family (online).  We are just so blessed in this life.  We can't wait to welcome another son into our family and we are so grateful for all the beautiful people that support us!