Does it depend on the person or the timing of the conversation?
I had only told a couple of people once I found out I was pregnant, other than hubby of course. The 2 people I chose to share with was one of my oldest and dearest friends from High School. I knew if anything she would be thrilled that we were adding to our brood, unexpectedly or otherwise. My other dear friend was one I knew would keep my little secret close to her heart. Neither one to pass judgement or say any insensitive comments like "are you crazy?" or "you're a little old to be starting over!" We never shared our news with our families at first. We felt there was was no sense in getting everyone excited, in case I miscarried. It just felt right and thought it would be easier on everyone.
As far as sharing the news with everyone else depended on the timing I guess. It didn't feel right just running up to random people, blurting out we were going to be adding to our family come November. We probably didn't spill the beans as quickly as we had with the others, for many reasons that made sense at the time.
Once receiving and accepting our prenatal diagnosis, made it easier to pass on our news. Which also lead to the question of how much information should be shared? It's not something you bring up in casual conversation... "Btw, our baby has Down syndrome". We have told only a few colleagues and some close friends and of course our family. All of which are super supportive and are anticipating his arrival as much as we are. We never really discussed who to tell or not. Because it doesn't matter to us or our family that our sweet baby will be born with different needs, it shouldn't matter to anyone else either. But still we don't share the diagnosis with everyone that we see, like our neighbours, or even the parents from school. Our thought is, they'll find out once he's born. I often wonder if its the best thing or not.
I ran into a colleague from my L&D days at Rockyview. We've known each other for many years and I really enjoyed working with her. Anyway, she obviously noticed I was expecting but politely didn't say anything until I answered her question as to "what's new?" She was excited for me and said some positive things, as she always does. I haven't seen her in nearly 7 years, but it felt like we just talked the other day. Long story short, I never told her. Was that wrong of me? It felt like Costco really wasn't the right place.
I am planning on meeting up with another close friend from Rockyview, this week for lunch. Again, I haven't seen or spoken to her in months. The last time we got together was shortly before my CVS. I never told her at the time, and actually just told her after running into our mutual friend. She of course is thrilled...surprised I'm sure, but thrilled for us. Part of me is uncertain if I should tell her everything or not. She is a good friend and I know she will offer some great support. I guess I will just see how our lunch date goes and if the timing is right to spill the beans...
