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I definitely want to hear what other people have to say about this too as I haven't told my boss yet either!

I'm thinking I'll probably say how I'm pregnant and when I'm due, and I'm hoping my boss will ask questions about my plans so I can explain them, but if he doesn't, I'll have to say something like "I do plan to take the 12 week maternity leave and I'd love to come back part-time or full-time after my leave is up. I'd love to work Tuesday through Thursday on a part-time schedule, but I'd also love to come back to this program and if I had to work full time to do that, I'm open to that possibility."

I didnt tell my manager till 18 weeks! I just said to him I need another day off coming on soon and he said "again?" And I said yep I will be needing to take time off regularly for my doctor appointments because I have a baby on the way, and his eye bulged out lol, but then he was very cool and supportive

I told my boss, "I'm pregnant." Short and sweet. I knew I didn't have anything to worry about but I read some great advice beforehand that stated to not be apologetic about it or act as if it's a burden. State it confidently, and let the boss take the lead on the remainder of details. My boss asked me, half jokingly, "You are coming back, right?" And I said yes, because I am. We only started talking about leave a couple of weeks ago and haven't finalized anything.

I would suggest finding out from HR what your leave policies are. I wouldn't necessarily back yourself into a "short leave" corner right now, because you don't know what is in store (complications, etc.). If your company has a standard leave policy, it's your right to take that. (Unless you don't want to, of course.)

I also read to time the announcement with the completion of a project or milestone, as if to send a message that your productivity won't be affected -- if you're concerned. You might also want to come in prepared with a plan for getting your work done while on leave -- people who might be able to manage your projects, ways that can be manageable for them, willingness to train, etc. In case it comes up.

Good luck!

I told my boss super early, I was only around six weeks! We'd been working on a team expansion and it had stalled so I told her that there was a new sense of urgency to get everything pushed through because I was pregnant and would be going out on maternity leave towards the end of the year.

Telling her early worked for me because then she was aware and we could be strategic in what we could do this year and what needs to be pushed off. It also pushed up some of my staffing timelines so I could make sure people were settled in their new roles before I went out. I'm lucky that I have such a great boss who is supportive of family life as well as work life.

I had been working for the company for 5 months when I told. I was 13 weeks and unsure of post-baby plans. As much as I like to babble when I'm nervous I stuck to the basics.

I need to let you know I'm pregnant
My due date is 12-12-12
I'm fully committed to my work until then, but will need some accommodations for doctors appointments.
I intend to take the standard maternity leave but I plan to help you prepare in any way I can.

That was it. Nothing about uncertainty about returning, or telecommuting, or part time. I will discuss any of this after the birth.
I made sure to meet with HR first to find out our company leave policies (6 weeks Paid Short Term Disability, 12 weeks FMLA)

I'm really glad I didn't have to stress about this. My boss is a really good friend of mine so she knew pretty much the day I peed on a stick. She was soooo happy and excited for me. She totally knew it was coming (and knew that I planned to take full leave and come back full time afterwards) so we didn't even discuss how it would affect me as an employee. We just hugged and squealed : )

@Adira: I would talk to HR first. The purpose isn't to tell them first. I wouldn't tell them at all. You're just inquiring about the maternity leave policy so that you're informed when you talk to your boss, if it comes up.

I just said, "Can we talk for a minute?" I went into his office, closed the door and sat down. Then I said, "Dan and I are having a baby!!!!!" (My boss knows my husband and we've hung out a few times outside of work). We didn't go over anything specific at that point but I did say I plan on taking leave but I'll be back. We talked about the rest of it about a month out from me giving birth.

@adira - I was going to tell my HR department first but....my "HR department" is my boss' wife. Haha.

@ladyfingers: @Foodnerd81: Thanks for your feedback. Believe it or not, at the shower yesterday, the HR Mgr was the one who started it by teasing my boss, "I suspect our next baby or bridal shower will also be for someone from your team"..thats why he (jokingly, but not really) responded with "I can handle weddings, but no more pregnancies!". blah....

@cokiezombie: Ugh, that really sucks that your boss said that!!! I'm surprised the HR person didn't say something, but maybe she thought he was totally joking?

My boss made a similar, though different comment in front of me a couple weeks ago. He was talking about a different guy who used to work for him that was taking six weeks off for the birth of his first child, and my boss said something like "WHY would you take six weeks off?? After two, you'll be bored and want to come back to work!" I think he was joking too, but now I'm concerned about telling him I'm taking 12 weeks off.

@cokiezombie: I'm going back to a small company where the big boss doesn't believe women can have families AND be committed to their job/career. My plan is to be as professional as possible, commit myself when I'm there (at work) and answer questions about the baby as quickly and positively as possible (ie, the baby is great! She's at home with her daddy, how's your day going? even if baby didn't sleep all night and is driving me insane). I would suggest just doing your best to show that you're totally committed to your job. Obviously your new baby and family will always come first, but when you're at the office, try to be AT the office.

@ADIRA: That's TERRIBLE! My boss is somewhat the same. He seems to be under the (mistaken) impression that babies are very much like puppies, and that you can put them in their cribs and leave them there all day. He also seems to think that Grandparents/Aunts/Uncles/Friends are falling over themselves to take care of baby any time you need. Like nobody else has a job/life/anything better to do. He drives me crazy and I do my very best to ignore him.

@JennyD: Oh yikes! That sucks about your boss! Is he older? I think it seems to be the trend that older generations are more used to women staying at home or there being family to help out with the kids. Both my parents and my in-laws work full time so there's no way they'll be able to help out when we have kids! My kids will definitely be going to daycare, but I plan to take the entire 12 weeks of maternity leave that I'm entitled!

@Adira: I don't think you need to tell hr first, but I'm glad I did. It gave me an idea of what standard leave was for our company, clued me into benefits I didn't know about, gave tips for telling my boss, and generally eased my mind a bit.
Friday is a good day to do it, so they have the weekend to process the news.

Did you tell yet?

@travelingbrit: Thanks for the advice! I still haven't told yet. I haven't even told my parents yet, haha. Waiting until our ultrasound (tomorrow) before we break the news to anyone.