Hopefully you have recovered from the pain, the shock and all the emotions, and you have come to the absolute realization that this baby is DEFINITELY the most beautiful baby ever seen. Now its time to announce the arrival to the whole world!



But hold up there tiger!!! You are gonna be bouncing off the walls for a while yet and it's likely that you will forget half the people that you need to tell, or forget half the things you need to tell 'em. So, before you start making those calls, take some time, relax, and plan out how you are going to announce the birth of your baby.

While you a taking some time out, here are some guidelines on how to make the baby announcement process run much more smoothly:

1. Make a list

Make a list of all the people who need to be told, together with their contact details - phone numbers, e-mails and addresses. If your baby hasn't been born yet, you are lucky - make your list BEFORE the big day.

2. Decide on the message

Write down all the important details about the birth - weight, gender, name, health of the mother, length of labour, any problems encountered, any funny situations, etc. If you don't write all this down, you will forget something important - guaranteed.

3. Decide on the delivery mechanisms.

Get yourself some ready-made baby announcements from the stationery store or the Internet. These ready-made, fill-in birth announcements come in a huge range of colors and styles, so there is definitely one that you will love. But if you find the idea of mass produced baby announcements a little uninspiring, don't despair, you can always customize them!

Lots of stores - and many places on the Internet in particular - will help you to develop customized birth announcements that are unique to you and your baby. You can choose from existing card templates or design your own - and you can customize both the images and the wording of your announcement. Some websites will even create the designs for you, so you can sit back, relax and concentrate on your new baby.

If you really want to create a personal touch for you baby announcements, you can even try designing the card yourself. This is something that needs to be done well before the birth, though. Decide on a special theme and use ribbons, stamps, flowers, etc to spice it up. Alternatively use a computer to save time and energy and create a professional looking announcement.

3. Take photos!

Seems obvious, really, but take lots of photos - with a digital camera if possible. Download them, or scan them into the computer and you can you then choose the best ones for your baby announcement cards.

4. Go hi-tech!

Why not make the occasion really special and create a baby announcement website! This is a fantastic way to let the whole world know about your new arrival and it's a great way for family and friends to take part in the whole process, if you have an announcement website, where people can leave messages of congratulations. You can even use the website as an on-going weblog of your baby's development. There are lots of site on the web that will allow you to create baby announcement sites for free, or a relatively low cost. And you can download photos onto the site.

So, relax, do a little planning and use these ideas to get working on your baby announcements. It's a very special occasion and with a little thought, you can ensure that it is signified in a unique a memorable way.