From baby showers to maternity photos and elaborate gender reveals, there is no shortage of ways to celebrate parents-to-be when they’re expecting a new bundle of joy. But some people are finding a brand new reason to celebrate that has nothing to do with diaper cakes or pink and blue desserts. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Couples are wholeheartedly embracing the decision to complete their family by throwing a vasectomy party — and some are even planning hilarious photo shoots to celebrate one partner going under the knife.
Vasectomy party ideas and announcements
Tyler Frederick and Chelsea Roy are one couple who went viral for their creative take on a vasectomy announcement. The Indiana couple posed for vasectomy reveal photos with photographer Elijah VanDine that have since been shared on Facebook over 20,000 times.
“We have a very exciting announcement to make,” Frederick writes on Facebook. “We are expecting… NEVER! Got snipped mid December and looking forward to the child free life.”
In some photos, the couple poses with underwear that say “snip snip” in the same way that expectant couples might pose with a onesie or stuffed animal. In others, Frederick hilariously cradles a pair of scissors.
Frederick says the couple decided to take their photos right after he underwent his vasectomy. Roy and Frederick have been together for more than four years and both wish to remain child-free. They staged their funny photo shoot as a way of celebrating that choice.
While vasectomy reveal photo shoots are a fun option for celebrating, they aren’t nearly as popular as the vasectomy party. On Pinterest, a search for “vasectomy party” yields hundreds of ideas for everything from decorations to desserts. Vasectomy parties are modeled after baby showers or gender reveals, and they’ve become a lighthearted way for people who are already parents to announce to the world that they are done having kids.
Kay Jones, a mom from Boise, Idaho, threw her husband a vasectomy party with balloons and cake. The mom of three had her Insta followers vote on a theme for the celebration. In the end, she went with a “no baby” theme, which is a play on the popular “Oh Baby” theme used in baby showers. Her husband even got a “Happy Vasectomy” banner and a tiara that says “DONE.”
Jones is far from the only parent to participate in the vasectomy party trend. Bakers and caterers on Instagram, including Cookie Crusade and Cake Time, have shared hundreds of photos of vasectomy-themed cookies, cakes and cake pops requested by their customers.
Grazin’ Gals, a gourmet snack and charcuterie board company in Raleigh, North Carolina, even shared a photo of a “balls voyage” vasectomy themed board they put together for a client, complete with a few phallic-shaped snacks and signs that say things like, “Snip, snip, hooray!”
And, just in case a party or photo shoot isn’t a big enough announcement, some families have even opted for giant “Happy Vasectomy Day” yard signs.
And, finally, some choose to fill a basket of goodies with a vasectomy twist. Jordan Hodges opted to put sticky notes over some classic candy names so they hit different for her husband.
Vasectomy facts and trends
For some, a vasectomy might seem like an intimate choice that couples would want to keep private, but the procedure isn’t rare, and its prevalence may be contributing to people’s growing comfort with sharing their vasectomy experiences.
- More than 500,000 men have vasectomies every year in the U.S, according to Cleveland Clinic.
- The vasectomy rate increased by 26% from 2014 to 2021, among privately insured men aged 18-64 in the U.S.
- The Atlantic has reported on the growing popularity of the “brosectomy,” a trend in which groups of friends plan their vasectomies together and then spend a guys’ weekend recuperating.
- There’s even a World Vasectomy Day, celebrated in November, created to educate people about the procedure and encourage more men to get one as a means of responsible family planning.
Celebrations like baby showers and gender reveals announce couples’ excitement about adding to their families. In some ways, a vasectomy celebration represents the other side of the coin. It’s a way of celebrating that a family is complete, whether people have many kids or none at all. It’s also a way of celebrating the partners who undergo the procedure for the benefit of their families. Vasectomy celebrations offer a whole lot of humor and sometimes an extra opportunity to eat cake. For many families, that’s more than worthy of a “Snip, snip, hooray!”