An expectant mother in Northern California is reeling after she says her gender reveal was “ruined” by a cake decorator.
On October 15, Ariel Johnson posted a video on TikTok playing the voicemail left by the baker, which spoils the surprise as she responds to it with very obvious annoyance – and ended up going very viral.
“Listen to this voicemail I got from the bakery COMPLETELY ruining my gender reveal,” Johnson captioned her video.
In the voicemail, the caller says that the bakery has run out of blackberry filling for its lemon pie. Johnson’s facial expression changes from utter shock to bitter disdain 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 is having a boy.
“It was supposed to be a SECRET (and they knew it),” Johnson wrote, adding that the bakery “basically had blackberries all the time.”
In a follow-up video posted on October 16, Johnson gives a clearer picture of the story. She received the results of a genetic screening (including the baby’s sex) in a sealed envelope from her doctor and took it straight to a bakery to place an order for a gender reveal cake.
“I wanted to have a nice little surprise with my boyfriend,” she says.
After receiving assurances from 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 the voicemail.
“Honestly, it was more than a huge bummer to have someone screw it up so carelessly, so I was definitely quite emotional,” Johnson tells TODAY.com, adding that she and her boyfriend called the bakery back and demanded a refund, that they ultimately receive. Johnson declined to reveal the name of the bakery.
The video spread to multiple social media platforms and commentators were divided in their responses to her, drawing both support and criticism.
A bakery just ruined its gender reveal by leaving a voicemail saying they had no blackberries for the filling.
She had asked for blackberries for a boy and raspberries for a girl. The bakery had one task…. pic.twitter.com/hMnZhWlchd
— Jelly Santos (@MrsJellySantos) October 15, 2024
“The bakery had one job,” one user on X wrote in a post that has been viewed more than 20 million times.
“Jody from Salad Bowl Bakery count your days 😭💀🤣,” one TikTok user joked.
“Here’s a gender reveal idea: ask the ultrasound person,” wrote a less sympathetic viewer on X.
“Gender reveals are stupid because how do you know the gender of someone who wasn’t born?” someone on X asked, echoing the comments of a few others who question the entire concept of gender reveals. (Aside from reinforcing the gender binary, gender reveals are often associated with controversial or dangerous stunts, wildfires, injuries, and even deaths.)
“That’s great, they gave your money back, but what if there was a problem with your order?” someone else asked Johnson.
“So this whole situation is self-inflicted right now,” another added. “Why were YOU the point of contact for the bakery when a potential problem arose? You have established yourself here.”
Many suggested Johnson should have had a “gender keeper,” a friend or family member charged with keeping the secret until the planned unveiling.
“This is the first time I’ve ever heard the term,” Johnson replied in another video.
“It didn’t matter what the gender of my future child would be, I’m happy either way,” Johnson tells TODAY.com, adding that while she has received many messages of support, the negative comments got so bad that she sent TikTok her a message about possible bullying.
“This was just supposed to be another small, magical moment in the whole process of my pregnancy,” she says. “This little problem will be just one of many in the line of parenthood.”
Johnson, whose baby is due this spring, says she finally broke the news to the expectant father after receiving the voicemail.
“The whole part of the pie was figuring it out together, in a fun and intimate way, so it was already ruined,” Johnson says. “I couldn’t wait and neither could he, so I told him. We are certainly very happy that we are having a child!”
Later, they cut the cake in a video for family, ate part of it and handed out the rest to friends.
“It wouldn’t have been worth the money we were originally going to pay,” Johnson says. “It was just okay.”
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
