Gender Predictions

We find out tomorrow if baby jelly bean is a boy or a girl and I can hardly think about anything else. For the past 2 weeks, every morning has begun with a countdown: 10 days until I find out. 9 days until I find out. 8 days…etc. I can’t believe that tomorrow I will get to say: TODAY IS THE DAY I FIND OUT!!! 

I think I know, but thinking you know and actually knowing are two totally different things. I’ve been trying to crack Talia ever since she performed my ultrasound, but she’s been pretty good about not letting on to my leading questions. 

I’m usually good about leaving secrets alone, but I am just too curious about this one. I’ve been scouring the internet looking for any outward clues I might be showing that lean towards one gender or another. 

There are loads of Old Wives Tales floating around out there regarding this topic. Here are just a few that I found, and how they pertain to me. 

1. Legend: Mommas carrying high are said to be having a girl; carrying low is supposed to signify a boy.  

Me: I thought I was carrying high, but as my bump develops, I seem to be carrying more vertically, which means most of the bump is distributed right in the center of my belly. Yesterday, my sister remarked that if anything, I was carrying a little low, which would mean boy. I’m totally confused on this one. 

Boy or Girl: Inconclusive. 

2. Legend: If the heart rate is below 140, the baby is a boy; If it’s above 140, it’s a girl. This one actually has some scientific weight to back it up. Boys are slightly more likely to have a lower in-utero heart rate than girls. 

Me: Baby Jelly Bean had a heart rate of 152. 

Boy or Girl? Girl! 

3. Legend: According to Chinese mythology, the gender of your baby can be predicted by your age at the time of conception. It’s a complicated formula, but if you go here, it’s pretty simple. Just enter your birthday and month of conception and BAM, the gender of your baby is revealed with about 50% accuracy. 

Boy or Girl? Girl! 

4. Legend: It’s thought that baby girls give their mommas more trouble with morning sickness than boys do. It’s thought that this might be true due to the extra estrogen needed to produce the female reproductive system. 

Me: Though I was very nauseated throughout my first trimester, I was only physically ill 3 or 4 times. 

Boy or Girl: If nausea, qualifies as ‘morning sickness’, I’d say this baby is a girl for sure.  

5. For similar hormonal reasons as morning sickness, it’s said that women carrying girls have more breakouts than those with baby boys. 

Me: Other than a massive puberty-style breakout around week 12, my skin has been relatively clear. 

Boy or Girl? Boy! 

6. Legend: If someone dangles your wedding ring on a chain over your belly and it swings in a pendulum motion from side to side, it’s said that you are having a boy. If it swings in a circular motion, it means it’s a girl. 

Me: I’ve done the test 3 times, and each time it has swung back and forth. 

Boy or Girl? Boy! 

7. Legend: Added estrogen means extra moodiness for moms carrying girls. If a mom is more even tempered, it’s said that she must be having a boy. 

Me: I have never been so irritable in all my life. Really, I’m a monster. You should keep your distance because I am nothing but grumpy. 

Boy or Girl? Girl. 

8. Legend: Craving sweet things is said to be a sign of a baby girl on the way, while a preference for salty snacks indicates a boy. 

Me: I’ve always had a sweet tooth, and that hasn’t changed, but my affinity for salty snacks has doubled since pregnancy. 

Boy or Girl? Boy! 

There are loads of other rumors and old wives tales out there offering promises of gender prediction. I have my own premonitions about what baby jelly bean is, but can honestly say that no matter what color balloons are released tomorrow morning, I will be beyond thrilled, grateful and blessed. 

But just for fun, what’s your guess? (Check back this weekend to see if you were right!)