There was a time when a gender reveal party involved nothing more than a cake. Parents would learn the gender of their baby and bake a cake that had a secret color on the inside. Or, they could have a bakery make one for them. The big reveal was when the parents cut open the cake so everyone could see what color was inside. Blue meant boy; pink meant girl.
Unfortunately, some parents want to take things to extremes, and this often results in property damage and injured people. One example was reported by Parents. A couple decided to announce their baby’s gender by participating in the milk crate challenge. It is a social media stunt that involves ascending a pyramid of milk crates. The person doing it usually tumbles off and becomes injured. The milk crate challenge started on TikTok.
According to Parents, a father climbed a stack of milk crates while holding a covered container. He fell off and injured his back. The container he was holding opened and blue colored dust was revealed. It’s a boy! It’s also a trip to the ER for the father.
Previously, The New York Times reported that two parents decided to reveal the gender of their baby by using a “smoke-generating pyrotechnic device”. They ended up igniting the El Dorado wildfire that consumed thousands of acres east of Los Angeles over Labor Day weekend (in 2020).
As a follow up, The New York Times reported (in 2021) that a grand jury indicted the couple on one count each of voluntary manslaughter. They also face three felony counts of recklessly causing a fire with great bodily injury, four felony counts of recklessly causing a fire to inhabited structures and 22 misdemeanor counts.
Are you considering having a gender reveal party? Be smart. Do it by baking a cake that you can cut open to reveal your baby’s gender. Everybody likes cake.
Related Articles on Families.com:
Gender Neutral Parenting is an Option
Gender Disappointment – It Does Happen Sometimes
Have Some Fun With Your Gender Reveal