A mother-to-be in Northern California is reeling after she says her gender reveal was “ruined” by a cake decorator.
On Oct. 15, Ariel Johnson posted a video on TikTok playing the voicemail left by the baker that spoils the surprise, as she reacts to it with very clear annoyance — and she ended up going very viral.
“Listen to this voicemail I got from the bakery COMPLETELY RUINING MY GENDER REVEAL,” Johnson wrote on her video.
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In the voicemail, the caller says the bakery is out of blackberry filling for her lemon curd cake. Johnson’s facial expression flashes from utter shock to bitter contempt as the decorator asks for a call back.
“I asked to add raspberries for a girl or blue/blackberries for a boy,” Johnson wrote to clarify why she was so upset. Now she knows she’s having a boy.
“It was supposed to be A SECRET (and they knew that),” Johnson wrote, adding that the bakery “actually had blackberries the whole time.”
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In a follow-up video posted on Oct. 16, Johnson offers a clearer picture of the story. She received the results of a genetic screening (which includes the sex of the baby) in a sealed envelope from her doctor and took it directly to a bakery to place an order for a gender reveal cake.
“I wanted to have a cute little surprise with my boyfriend,” she says.
After being assured by the bakery that the inside of the cake would be kept confidential, the couple went home and waited for their order. Then the decorator left that voicemail.
“Honestly, it was more than a giant bummer to have it ruined by someone so carelessly, so I was definitely pretty emotional,” Johnson tells TODAY.com, adding that she and her boyfriend called the bakery back and demanded a refund, which they ultimately received. Johnson declined to reveal the name of the bakery.
The video spread to multiple social media platforms, and commenters were divided in their responses to her, sending her both support and criticism.
A bakery just ruined her gender reveal by leaving a voicemail saying they didn’t have blackberries for the filling.
— Jelly Santos (@MrsJellySantos) October 15, 2024
She had asked for blackberries for a boy and raspberries for a girl. The bakery had one job…. pic.twitter.com/hMnZhWlchd
“The bakery had one job,” a user wrote on X in a post viewed over 20 million times.
“Jody from Salad Bowl Bakery count your days 😭💀🤣,” joked one TikTok user.
“here’s a gender reveal idea: ask the ultrasound person,” wrote one less sympathetic viewer on X.
“Gender reveals are stupid because how do you know the gender of someone who isn’t born?” asked one person on X, mirroring the comments of a few others who take issue with the entire concept of gender reveals. (Aside from reinforcing the gender binary, gender reveals have often been associated with controversial or dangerous stunts, wildfires, injuries and even deaths.)
“Thats great they gave you a refund, but genuinely what were they supposed to do if there’s an issue with your order?” someone else asked Johnson.
“So this entire situation is self inflicted at this point,” added another. “Why were YOU the point of contact for the bakery should a potential issue arise? You set yourself up here.”
Many suggested that Johnson should have had a “gender keeper,” which is a friend or family member entrusted with keeping the secret until the planned reveal.
“This is the first time I’ve ever heard of the term,” Johnson replied in another video.
“It didn’t matter what the sex of my future child would be, I am happy either way,” Johnson tells TODAY.com, adding that though she’s received plenty of messages of support, the negative comments were getting to be so bad, TikTok messaged her about potential bullying.
“This was just supposed to be another little, magical moment of the whole process of my pregnancy,” she says. “This little hiccup is going to just be one of many down the line of parenthood.”
Johnson, whose baby is due this spring, says she ended up telling the news to the dad-to-be after getting the voicemail.
“The whole part of the cake was to find out together, in a cute and intimate way, so it was already ruined,” Johnson says. “I couldn’t wait and neither could he, so I told him. We are very excited to be having a child anyways!”
They later ended up cutting the cake in a video for family, eating some and giving the rest out to friends.
“It would not have been worth the money we were originally going to pay,” Johnson says. “It was just okay.”
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
