With my relatives scattered all over the country, I've found that the easiest (and most fun) way to keep everyone up-to-date is with a weekly update email.

When our son was born, we didn't have a very creative way to introduce him to the family. While recovering at the hospital, I called my parents and they shared our exciting news with the rest of the family. Later, I followed up with a birth announcement and a brief email.

This short email with a photo attached was the beginning of our "weekly update." When our son was almost a week old, I decided to update my relatives on what had happened during our son's first week of life. I didn't know many new mothers at the time, so this was the best way for me to share our parenting journey and to have a support network from the very beginning.

I've kept the tradition going ever since. Some weeks the updates are more interesting than others. But I love writing these weekly updates. They help me remember my favorite moments during the week. And help to remind me that both the challenging and the blissful times can be short-lived...so much changes in just 7 days!

With baby #2 on the way, I am brainstorming ways to announce his or her arrival to our relatives. We've enjoyed sending out our weekly updates so much that we hope to keep the tradition going and to start sending out an email and a photo a week with both siblings together. It may not be the most creative way to announce our child's arrival, but I hope it will help bridge the distance between us and relatives with whom we aren't able to visit frequently.

How did you announce the birth of your child(ren) to relatives who were too far away to visit you?