Being pregnant seems like the kind of news happy moms-to-be would like to share. Not "Jersey Shore" party girl Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi.
Though she spent weeks denying it, the MTV reality star is expecting her first child according to reports from the New York Post.
Snooki, 25, is reportedly three months pregnant and the father of the child is boyfriend, Jionni LaValle.
Why this should make headlines still mystifies the show's critics, who think of "Jersey Shore" as the ultimate example of the dumbing down of North America.
Fans, too, will wonder how this baby news will impact Snooki -- and perhaps change her partying ways.
But love her or loathe her, Snooki's baby news has tossed fans and MTV executives into a proverbial tizzy.
In February, the hard-partying starlet vehemently denied rumours of her pregnancy to ABC's "Good Morning America."
"I definitely do want kids, but I'm not pregnant," Snooki told GMA's lifestyle anchor Lara Spencer.
"Being pregnant should be a real thing and a happy thing, and I'm not," she said.
The world now knows about Snooki's pregnancy cover-up. How the move and motherhood will impact her career in the months to come is uncertain.
The news has reportedly thrown MTV's executives into crisis mode. Their concern is understandable.
The network is currently filming a "Jersey Shore" spinoff that headlines Snooki and Jenni "JWoww" Farley. This spinoff made perfect sense to MTV producers.
Since its debut in December of 2009, "Jersey Shore" has earned record ratings for MTV, making it the most viewed series telecast in the networks history.
Snooki's raucous conduct and her M.O. of falling down drunk and losing her underwear at almost every nightclub in Jersey endeared her to fans and made her part of the show's success.
Such behaviour would have enlivened MTV's spinoff, which focused on the women's relationship as friends and roommates.
Looking ahead, however, will fans really want to watch Snooki attending Lamaze classes? Would they be just as amused to see Snooki hovering over a toilet in the throes of morning sickness?
The bigger question, still, is will MTV stick with Snooki?
The cover-up has bought the star enough time to cash in on her pregnancy.
Snooki has reportedly brokered a deal to announce the news of her impending motherhood on the cover of Us Weekly. That deal came after the 4-foot-9 personality shopped her story to several celebrity magazines.
Snooki has also used the time to lock in several other business deals. The star reportedly has plans to put her name on baby clothing, bibs, rattles and strollers.
The world will have to wait and see if motherhood turns Snooki into a lifestyle baron to rival Martha Stewart, or the most unlikely winner mother of the year. For now, one tweet puts this baby news from the budding entrepreneur into perspective:
"Snooki is pregnant," one fan tweeted. "So, the Mayans were right after all."
