How to plan for International when a baby is a-comin’

1. Get REALLY EXCITED!
Find out about the incoming tiny human. Go mental with excitement for Gemma and Brian’s gorgeous little monkey to soon be joining the quartet family!

2. Embrace the uncertainty…
After Gem told us the news and we had figured out the approximate timings (she’s due in August, and International is in September), we knew this might mean we wouldn’t compete at International this year, depending on what might happen when (and where, and how). But… thanks to Gem’s sheer determination and dedication to barbershop, we decided to plan as though we would be going… but with the knowledge that we might need to pull out at the last minute. It’s given us a real sense of perspective and has helped us to have a more relaxed attitude to our contest preparations – if the stars align and Gem can make it, we will just be totally over the moon to be in New Orleans together – and if we end up giving it a miss this year, we will all be pretty busy falling in love with the little one!

3. Break the news to our main lady…
To be honest, we were pretty nervous to break the news to HRH Nicky Salt (Queen of France), who has been our all-round guide and guru for Sweet Ads, quartet and life in general over the last few years… especially when she first shared her own SUPER AWESOME news that she will be doing the webcast in New Orleans and would be there with us! However, we should have known that she’d be true to the absolute Queen that she is and embrace this news with all the excitement and love in the world. And she was EXTREMELY fast to be the first to sign up for baby cuddles in New Orleans… which brings us to…

4. Enlist your nearest and dearest to form the Fox Cub International Care Team
Basically, it turns out that we know a lot of lovely people who can’t wait to huff on that new baby smell. We are extremely lucky to have a host of quartet husbands, grandparents, coaches and chorus families who are readying themselves for babysitting duties in New Orleans! So no take-backsies, ok guys!?

5. CHIPS!!!
Use our leading lady’s pregnancy as an excuse to buy flattering black A-line quartet dresses and collectively give up on any remote concept of pre-convention diets… aka TIME FOR ALL THE CHIPS!!!