Making announcements

When you tell your children that there will be a new baby coming to the family, it's never quite the experience that you picture in your mind. It's like getting kool-aid when you were expecting soda. The kids over-all were OK with it, although some acted as though we had made an executive decision without properly putting the matter up to vote. (Which we had.) Perhaps the older ones know all too well the challenges that a baby will bring: more babysitting, crying, and needing attention... while the younger ones are thinking about how cool a real live baby doll could be: dressing the baby, teaching it to say their name, getting the baby to laugh... put both perspectives together, and it's a little closer to the truth anyway...
Then the countdown until the ultrasound began about 3 weeks ago. Jackson said if it was a girl then the girls could have it. Josh said he hoped it would be a boy, but if it was a girl then maybe the older girls would leave Jackson alone. Everyone was anticipating and predicting with all kinds of strange logic, but in the end, again no vote-- it would simply be an executive decision made by One.
The kids came home from school yesterday and were desperate for us to tell them what happened at the ultrasound appointment (OK the junior high boys forgot to ask) and I announced we would tell them over chocolate cake after dinner. Needless to say, I had forgotten to buy the ingredients and ended up spending 2 hours at gymnastics with a nervous first-time daughter... things were definitely not going according to plan. I came home, fed everyone randomly and then finally called everyone together to make the announcement. "Where's the chocolate cake? I thought we were having chocolate cake!" --Benson obviously has his priorities in order. We prepped them all, reminding them it is not a contest of boys vs. girls, and that a healthy baby was most important. Everyone agreed that they would be happy either way. Since Jackson had been at the ultrasound and nobody had thought to ask him, we asked him to tell everyone: "The doctor says it's going to be a boy" he nonchalantly mentioned while playing with a toy. The girls went speechless, looked at each other, and began weeping and wailing while the boys smirked and reminded the girls that now it would be four against two-- what brotherly love. Josh, our more sensitive son did try to comfort the girls by telling them "don't worry, maybe mom can just have another one after this one." Ummm, yeah. About that.
I've decided that the whole family council idea is nice in theory but it brings dynamics of it's own to the table. It's efficient, and it's a great way to make official announcements, but... like I said, it sometimes gives you the kool-aid effect.