Boy or Girl?

I will admit that, up to this week, I have been in complete denial of my pregnancy. How I have managed to do so while carrying around such a protruding belly (I became a lot bigger a lot quicker with this one) I will never know. But it has been my defense mechanism and I have embraced it. But this is the BIG week, the 20 week mark week, the half-way point week, and more importantly the ULTRASOUND week. Yes, we go in tomorrow to find out what "it" is, and maybe the fact that I will no longer call this thing an "it" as of tomorrow has allowed me to come to terms with the fact that I will be a mother of 3.

Anyone who has asked has gotten my opinion that this baby that I am carrying is in fact a boy. I really, really think that it is and I have back-up from Alex who is dying for a baby brother to ride bikes with (where Alex will always win, so he has informed us.) And I take great stock in the fact that most times little kids are right on when determing the sex of their siblings. So, to back Alex and me up, I did what probably every mother-to-be has done before, but what is really my first go at -- I did all the tests to predict the sex of our baby and we'll see who is right.....

The Heart Rate Test:
According to this one, if the mother's heart rate is over 140 then it's a girl. If it's under, than it must be a boy.
***I sat down and took it and what do you know, it's exactly 140 -- what does that mean?!?

The Chinese Lunar Calendar:
Now this is really a science. You determine the mom's age and the month of conception (which was in September, Charles) and then voi⋅là -- I will be having a girl!!


Belly Shape Test:
I actually subscribed to this belief that you can predict the sex by the shape of the belly. If you are carrying low it is supposedly a boy, and if you are carrying high then it is a girl. The problem with this is that I have no idea how I'm carrying. I'm HUGE (at only 20 weeks) so I think I am carrying both high and low. So we'll call the test undeterminable.


The Ring Test:
You know this one. You put your wedding ring on a string and then hold it over the tummy-in- question and watch the ring swing. If it swings in circles it is a boy and if it swings from side-to-side it is a girl. Again, I found discrepancies with this test, as well. If you hold it over your tummy long enough it will move both ways, in circles and sideways. Another undeterminable assessment, but one that I tried to rig by slowing moving my hand in a circular motion.


And now, the DAD's Weight Test:
If he is gaining weight along with the mom, then it is a boy. If he's not, it's a girl. Well, Cory has actually lost weight (which makes me feel even bigger) so I guess that's another vote for a girl.

And then I took a 21 question quiz. Hight-tech stuff with promising results. I mean, what could be more accurate than asking if my feet arre "colder than before pregnancy" or the "same as before" or if my nose has experienced "spreading during the pregnancy?" And then the computer computes for awhile then spits out a percentage. So according to the "Will Your Baby be a Girl or a Boy" quiz, I have a 57% chance of this being a boy and a 42% chance it's a girl. So, although the odds are on my side, it still leaves me a little disconcerted about the reamining 1%.

Well, with all this high-tech stuff and mother's intuition, who need an ultrasound? But, I'll guess we'll keep the appointment anyway. We'll let you know....