Tomorrow's the Day...

Well, tomorrow we have an ultrasound which should - hopefully - determine the gender of our third baby! I thought it might be fun to look at all the "old wives' tales" about how to determine the gender of a baby. None of these have any basis in actual reality, of course! So, for the fun of it...

1. Some people say that you have first trimester morning sickness more often with a girl. Well, no morning sickness here, but then, I didn't have any with either of my girls. According to this old wives' tale: Boy.

2. Another one is that how you carry the baby determines the gender (how could that even be true??). Supposedly, you are more likely to have a girl if you carry the baby high and get wider, whereas a boy is more likely to be carried all in front, down low. So, for me I don't know how high I am carrying the baby - it is still down below my belly button, based on the flutters and thumps I feel! - but I have the "baby bump" look up high (which I assume is just because everything has been pushed up higher in there!). I haven't gotten wider - you can't tell I am pregnant at all from the back. But that was how I was with the girls too, although I am sure one could tell I was pregnant from the back when watching me "waddle" during the last trimesters! So according to this old wives' tale... hmm, by appearances only: Boy. By facts (that the baby is not being carried "up high" at this stage), and the fact that I am not gaining weight all over (which apparently it is assumed all pregnant women do, since all my maternity pants fall off my rear end all day long!), then it is hard to tell.

3. Another old wives' tale states that if the hair on your legs begins to grow faster than it used to pre-pregnancy, then you are having a boy. My leg hair is growing at the same rate as usual, I think... in fact, it may have even slowed down lately. So according to this one: Girl.

4. There is a myth that "girls steal all your beauty." Sounds like some kind of fairy tale, like Cinderella being beautiful and the stepmother being ugly, huh? Apparently this can mean several things: your face will break out more, your nose will appear to be getting wider, and your face will become rounder. My skin has been breaking out a little more than usual, but my face is not rounder that I can tell, nor is my nose wider. My face is rounder than it is thinner just naturally, I think... so this old wives' tale predicts: Girl? Or Boy?

5. Many people claim that their husband gained "sympathy weight" during their pregnancies. Some people attributed it to his eating bigger portions or eating whenever his hungry, pregnant wife was eating! Others say their husbands gained more weight than they did! There is actually a name for it when an expectant father develops pregnancy symptoms: Couvade Syndrome. Apparently, this can affect all men regardless of the baby's gender, but the old wives' tale claims that men gain weight while their wives are pregnant with girls. My husband has actually gained some - not much, but he says he's noticed it. So according to this one: Girl.

6. The Chinese Gender Predictor Chart. This one was supposedly an ancient predictor chart used in China millions of years ago, discovered by some archeologist or something (yeah, can you tell that I am skeptical? ;). Anyway, it claims to be 90% accurate, and many people swear by it. In fact, it is correct in saying that my first two babies were girls. However, I looked back at it for my mom's pregnancies, and it was only right one out of four times... I was predicted to be a boy, and two of my three brothers were predicted to be girls. You find out your prediction based on your age at conception and the month in which you conceived. But you have to do it based on your lunar age, or something like that, so you have to find a chart that will convert it for you, supposedly. I have tried some charts online that have different results, so who knows which ones are the accurate ones? Supposedly, it is the one that converts your age for you (which I linked to, but it appears that the converter links aren't working for some reason), and according to that one, this baby is a: Girl.

7. Food cravings: this one says that if you are pregnant with a girl, you will crave sweets, and if you are having a boy, you are more likely to crave salty, sour, spicy, or protein-packed foods (there's a lot of variance on that one - girls are always sweet, and boys are always everything that is not sweet!). Well, my first major craving was Mongolian Beef. Then I have craved Sonic chili cheese dogs (I know, nasty, right?) and Chick-fil-A, particularly the Spicy Chicken Sandwich and their chicken salad. And burgers... oh, we had some great cheeseburgers made on the grill the other night - so yummy!! I was craving Steak n Shake milkshakes a little bit, but once I was eating them, they'd make me feel almost sick, like they were too rich. I was craving Pop Tarts like crazy, and instant apple cinnamon oatmeal (both with milk), and I would pass up the ice cream in the freezer to have those. In the first trimester, the idea of drinking hot tea or coffee was nauseating to me because of the sweetness and warmth. So overall, I would say I am craving non-sweet foods with a higher frequency. This old wives' tale predicts: Boy.

8. This one has to do with the baby's heart rate, and many people swear it is accurate, to the point that some nurses and doctors even say it to their patients! But it has supposedly been medically shown to be a myth. It says that if a baby's heart rate in utero is at 150 beats per minute or higher, then the baby is a girl. If the heart rate is around 140 or lower, it is a boy. Actually, it would seem that a baby's heart rate would vary based on whether it was sleeping or active, right? Anyway, so far the baby's heart rate was 150something the one time they measured it and told me, so according to this old wives' tale: Girl.

9. This one is nuts. It actually sounds like it could be dangerous because it produces a chemical reaction! So, I haven't done it! It says that you can mix your urine with Drano and the prediction is based on what color it turns. Gross.

10. Supposedly the Mayans would predict gender based on even and odd numbers. If the mother's age at conception and the year of conception are both odd or both even numbers, then it is a girl, and if one number is even and the other is odd, then it is a girl. I have also heard a version that states you have to add the two numbers together, and even means girl while odd means boy. Either way, 2010 and 31 years old predicts for us: Boy.

11. Another one says if you are moodier during pregnancy, you are having a girl. I think have been least moody with this pregnancy than with any of them, so according to this old wives' tale: Boy.

12. If your feet are colder during pregnancy, then it is a boy. Well, my feet are always cold, and they continued to be cold during winter to the point that I was always wearing slippers around the house. But that is normal for me. Now that it is spring, my feet are definitely not colder than normal. So this myth predicts a: Girl.

So, based on this, the results are: Boy 5, Girl 5, and one questionable result, and one I refuse to try!

Does anyone else have strange myths they have heard to predict the baby's gender? How about any predictions - do you have a guess about this baby for me?