Telling Your Boss that You're Pregnant...Again

The first time I told my boss that I was pregnant, I had only been employed for about 3 months, and coincidentally I was already 3 months along. I was scared to death that I was going to lose my job, and that they would be upset by the whole situation. Much to my surprise, the news was taken with a hug and a congratulations! Followed by the generic, when are you due, how far along are you, yada yada yada...Everything worked out great, I made it to 38 weeks and then I began my maternity leave. I had the baby 3 days after my due date and took 8 weeks off following the birth before returning to work full-time.

It's been about 13 months since I returned to work, and here I am, pregnant yet again. The SAME fear and anxiety consumed me every minute that went by until I finally got the courage to spill the beans. I was a bit more creative with the news this time around. The Friday before Halloween, I decided I'd send her a picture with the subject line "SURPRISE". I tend to send her occasional picture updates of my kids from time to time and figured she'd assume the attached picture was to that effect. The picture I attached, however, was the ultrasound picture of my new critter and I added to the side the due date May 31, 2012.  I stared at the e-mail for several minutes, hovering over the send button, trying to decide if this was really a good idea or not, but finally, one quick click and it was done. I immediately walked into her office and told her that I had e-mailed her a picture. I sat down and waited for her reaction, and tried to read her face as much as possible. As predicted, I definitely gave her a shock. Her jaw dropped open, which ultimately turned into a smile, but then she said, "What are you guys doing?" lol. It was a playful question, but then she congratulated me and continued to say what a surprise this was.  I told her it was not planned and I was in shock myself (which wasn't really true, but thought that would blow over a lot smoother). There was some brief conversation about the due date and how close the kids would be, but that was it, and then I returned to my desk and we continued working the rest of the afternoon.

I suppose I might be on a fortunate side of things whereas the office I work at was initially a family business (Law Office) that has slowly grown with an additional partner and 3 employees. The overall feel is very caring, friendly, and flexible. I've never had any conflicts with my job and they've always adjusted to any situation I get in.

Once my co-workers heard the news, I was congratulated and hugged as usual, and everyone expressed their happiness for me. 

In my situation, I should have known that the news would be taken lightly, especially since I know how loving the people are that I work with, and that they had shown support in this situation before. Even the first time, I knew that there was a slim chance that I would be "reprimanded" in someway by these awesome people.

All in all, if you work for friendly people, there's nothing to be scared of :).  For those of you with less than compassionate employers...good luck!