Soon after your baby is born, you will want to announce his or her arrival to the world. Birth announcements are the customary way to let family and friends know about your little one’s arrival. You can make your own birth announcements on your home computer. It’s fun and will save you money.
Once the baby arrives, life will get very busy. It may be months before you find the time to create the announcement. My baby is three months old and I just got his birth announcements out in the mail last week. To save time later, you can start to create your birth announcement now.
Starting early is easier if you know whether the baby will be a boy or a girl. You will need to purchase card stock, which is a heavy paper similar to post cards. This is available in a wide range of colors. If you know the gender of the baby, you can choose a nice blue, pink or purple. If you don’t know the gender, you may want to buy a neutral color, such as yellow or mint green.
Choose a cute saying for the top of the announcement. You can find ideas on web sites that sell birth announcements or on catalogs that may come in the mail during your pregnancy. Set up the page on your computer program with the baby’s name (if known) and leave spaces for weight, date, length and time of the birth. Once this is done, it will be easy to go back and add the relevant information later.
Adding pictures of the baby is a nice touch. If you have a digital camera, it’s easy to take a picture or two to add to your announcement. If you don’t have a digital camera, you can get your photographs on a CD ROM when you have the film developed. Leave space for the picture, so you will just have to add it later.
To save more time, print out address labels for the recipients while you are waiting for the baby to be born. Blank labels can be found at any office supply store. Once you have finished the announcements, you will just have to stick on the labels and mail them. If you will be using envelopes, you can address them ahead of time as well.
By taking the time to set up your announcement while you are still pregnant, you will be able to finish the job in minutes after the baby is born. Add the information about the birth and pictures, then you are ready to print. Print a test page to be sure the layout is right before you print the rest. Be sure to print out an extra to add to the baby book or scrap book.
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