For as long as I can remember, I’ve been adamant that I wouldn’t find out the sex of my first baby. I’ve personally never felt like I wanted to know beforehand. I understand why so many people do choose to find out, it just never seemed like the choice for me. I want the moment I find out whether it’s a girl or a boy to take place when I meet this little one. I’ve also never really felt like I need to prepare any differently for a boy or a girl. The more anyone contests my decision or defends their own, the more stubbornly resolved I feel.
As with anything pregnancy-related, there are all sorts of opinions here. I love how differently everyone feels about this & think it makes our pregnancies so unique. Many have expressed that they never could have waited, or they wouldn’t have felt prepared, or they wanted more of a connection to their baby. Those are all fair feelings, albeit incredibly personal to each peron. & I just don’t feel that way myself. With technology making it so easy to find out now, it seems like most do, another factor in my not wanting to. I’m a stubborn Leo & like to be different.
N probably would have found out if it were totally up to him. Once we decided to make a game of it and take bets, he came around to my side though. Nothing like a little game or competition to make things more exciting!
So, I’ve set up an online pool on Baby Bookie. It’s free to place a bet, but we’re open to setting up some more serious gambling too if there’s enough interest. In order to help you make your decision, I’ve combed through all the Old Wives Tales & compiled my answers. Let’s break it down!
Chinese Gender Prediction Chart
There are two different charts you can use. Lucky for me, both the Chinese Lunar Calendar & the Ancient Chinese Gender Chart say girl. This chart is supposed to be the more accurate of the two though, if you’re looking for results yourself.
RAMZI Method
I read somewhere that this one is said to be 95% accurate. It’s based on an early ultrasound. The idea is that you can tell the gender based on what side the placenta is forming on. I used my 9 week abdominal ultrasound. Story goes that if baby is on the left, it’s a boy and if it’s on the right it’s a girl. (It will be reversed for a transvaginal ultrasound, from what I’ve read.) From what I could tell, baby is a boy. I’m not sure I read my ultrasound correctly or that 9 weeks is early enough for this one.
9 week ultrasound photo
Skin Changes
There are a few different predictions here. Firstly, boys are said to give you dry skin, whereas girls bring out the oil in your skin. My skin has been drier than dry all winter (like everyone’s in Calgary, I suspect) so we’ve got another vote for boy. They also say that if you’re getting a lot of compliments that you’re glowing, you’re having a boy. No comments? Girl. I can’t think of any comments of this nature, so another girl vote. Lastly, girls are said to “steal your beauty”, leading to more breakouts. I’ve definitely had a lot more breakouts than normal (I generally have pretty clear skin, aside from psoriasis). So there’s a girl vote again.
Linea Negra
Some moms get a dark line that runs down the center of their baby bellies. At first, I didn’t think I was going to get this, but then one day it suddenly appeared. My line continues above my belly button, which is supposed to mean we can expect a boy.
Hair
If your hair is thick and glossy, they say you’re having a boy. If it’s dull and limp, it’s a girl. I have seen no real change in my hair, aside from it growing slightly faster than normal since I started taking prenatal vitamins. I’m not sure I can attribute any change to pregnancy though, so I guess we’re having a puppy according to this one. 😉 Neither.
Baking Soda Test
This is another one touted as having a pretty high level of accuracy. 80% this time. I almost didn’t do it since it just seemed a little too weird & intimate, but then I cut a weird (wasteful) cabbage water one from the list so I figured I could do this one. You take 2 tablespoons of baking soda and mix it with your urine. If it fizzes, you’re having a boy. If it remains flat, you’re having a girl. Mine fizzed: BOY.
Body Hair
Yeah, I know, a few of these are maybe a little TMI. I’m sure the Internet doesn’t really need to know about this. Too late now! Lucky for me, my body hair is growing normal, which is supposed to mean girl.
Weight Gain
If you are carrying all your weight out front (like you’re smuggling a basketball), baby is likely a boy. If the weight piles on all over, it might be a daughter. I decided not to use my own judgment on this one, since my own weight gain seems significantly more noticeable to me than it does to anyone else. Everyone I asked said I seemed to be all bump so far. Maybe they were just being nice, but we’re going with it. Boy.
Baby’s Heart Rate
Many people swear by this one. It’s said that girls have a faster heart rates than boys. The normal range is between 120 bpm and 180 bpm, but over 140 bpm is supposed to signal a baby girl. Baby dB’s heart rate has averaged 144 bpm, & has never been below 140 bpm so far. Girl.
Cravings
The good ol’ salty vs sweet. Sweet foods are linked to girls and salty to boys. I’ve always had a major preference for salty foods. Even the sweet treats I enjoy best err on the side of salty (salted caramel all day every day!). That is until I got pregnant. Now I’m always craving candy, ice cream, chocolate…basically all things sweet. It’s been a bizarre change for me. I guess we’re predicting girl thanks to this one. (Or it’s just one of many signs that this is truly N’s child. He loves his sweets!)
Headaches
Extreme headaches are said to signal a baby boy, while no headaches are said to mean girl. I’m happy to have been relatively headache free throughout my pregnancy so here’s another girl vote.
Sickness
Baby girls supposedly trigger nausea with vomiting whereas a boy will only cause nausea. Again, I was really luckily to have very minimal nausea. I was mostly able to control it by eating regularly, which I don’t generally have a problem with. 😉 BOY.
Clumsy vs Graceful
I would never describe myself as graceful; however, I saw no real change in my level of clumsiness since getting pregnant. Supposedly that means we’re having a girl.
Wedding Ring Test
I think everyone is pretty familiar with this one. You’re supposed to dangle your wedding band over your belly on a string and wait for it to start moving. Back and forth means boy & in a circle means it’s a girl.
I think this one has more to do with what mom thinks babe might be than anything else, but maybe that’s good for accuracy. When we did this it started out moving back & forth, & then went to circles. N said that we should go with boy, since that what it did first. I think this is a clear indication that I have absolutely no idea what we’re having. 😉
TL; DR
We’ve got 7 votes for boy, 8 for girl, & 1 for neither (or puppy, are we getting another puppy?!). As far as the two supposed “most accurate” tests, they both predict we’re having a boy. You can decide if you believe they have more merit.
Our pool will also allow you to predict baby’s birthdate. My due date is July 23, 2018 (my birthday!). Some say you can look to dad for whether babe will be early or late – N & I both came early. They say you’re usually late with your first, but we’re both first born. Will babe follow his parent’s lead & come early, or will be add a third Leo to the family?
That’s all I got! Check the site, place your bets, & let us know if you bought into any old wives tales!
You can follow along with the rest of my pregnancy bumpdates here.
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