For some couples finding out the gender of their child is the most exciting thing to look forward to in the early stages of pregnancy. This is followed closely by the excitement of furnishing the nursery before inevitably realizing that buying baby stuff can virtually send you broke. In fact, babies are expensive – period. I’ve already said to Chris that we’re sticking Jacob in diaper commercials as soon as he’s able! Jokes. Or maybe not. 
These days you need not wait until the 20-week morphology examination to discover whether or not to paint your nursery Smurf blue or Barbie pink. A blood test can be done to determine the gender of the tiny creature that’ll be leasing your uterus for the next nine months – but it’ll cost you. $500 to be exact. So being the fiscally responsible adults that we are (well one of us is and I’ll give you a hint, it’s not me), we chose to suck it up and wait the extra two months to find out. Now let the speculation begin.
You’ve probably heard from other mums, family relatives and random strangers on what they believe the gender of your baby to be. Some factors can be as arbitrary as how often you throw up in your first trimester to how ugly your breakouts are. I’m not sure many of these are particularly accurate so I thought I’d do a fun post to dispel these wives tales – so here goes.
Busting Baby Gender Myths
Morning Sickness
Myth: If you experience severe morning sickness then there is a good chance that you’re expecting a girl.
Whilst I never experienced any morning sickness throughout my pregnancy (sorry to all other mom-to-be’s who have had terrible first trimesters) and I am having a baby boy, I have a friend who is also expecting a boy but has had terrible morning sickness. I could probably name a few others who have been in the same boat and had the easiest pregnancy and had baby girls so I’m sorry to say this one isn’t true.
The Shape of your Baby Bump
Myth: If you’re carrying high then you’ve got yourself a girl and a boy if you’re carrying low.
I did a little digging and found out this has come from the very outdated and sexist belief that boys need greater independence and hence sit lower whilst girls need greater protection and sit higher in the womb for safety. I don’t think my bump is sitting particularly high nor is it low… so is my baby confused?
Food Cravings
Myth: If you’re craving citrus while pregnant, you’re having a girl.
Myth: If you’re craving sweets then you’re having a girl and a boy if you crave anything salty.
Ok – I’m going to put this simply to you. I crave food. I don’t discriminate and will eat almost anything you plonk in front of me. I want vegemite and avocado on toast with a side of hotcakes and bacon. Oh and you can throw in some OJ somewhere in there too. Truth is, you can parade food in front of me but you’d be doing so at your own risk because I will fight you for it. So again, it appears my baby is confused about its gender because I want it all!
Adult Acne
Myth: If you experience breakouts frequently then you’re having a girl.
Well I call bullsh*t on this one because I haven’t had a single week where I haven’t had a small cluster of pimples or a mega blind pimple appear in the most inopportune of places. But then again, any acne on the face is inconvenient.
Face Shape
Myth: If your face starts to get rounder or fuller then you’re having a girl.
I think my third chin says otherwise. At the rate that I’ve been inhaling food (much like Kirby when he sucks everything around him into that little pink blob of a body) I’m surprised that my chins don’t each have their own postcode. I don’t think I’ve ever seen my face or my body for that matter – look so… voluptuous (I’m being highly complimentary to myself here).
Mood Swings
Myth: If you’re experiencing severe mood-swings, expect a baby girl.
I can hear my partner laughing in disbelief already because my moods have been a rollercoaster these last six months. He’s in a separate room now snoring away because he couldn’t compete with my pillow fortress any longer and also because he’s terrified of disturbing the grizzly bear.
Consult a Toddler
Myth: If a toddler boy shows interest in your belly, you’ll have a girl. If he ignores you, it’s a boy.
I had dinner with my family on New Year’s Eve and my 5 year-old cousin Eric was present. Whilst he did show an interest in feeling the movement in my belly, I’m fairly sure he thinks I’m giving birth to a Power Ranger or some other crime fighting, spandex sporting superhero that he’s been watching on the telly.
Leg Hair Growth
Myth: If your leg hair grows faster, it’s a boy. If not, it’s a girl.
Here’s something random you will never have guessed but I’ve NEVER shaved, waxed or lasered my legs before. Asians just don’t have that much hair and my leg hair has stayed the same for the last 15 years so this myth would say I’m having neither? Well that’s worrying haha! The only place I have ever really shaved, I can no longer see so it’ll have to remain untrimmed until D-Day. I know, TMI but I really don’t care at this stage because everything is uncomfortable to me right now.
Ok so I know I could go on forever with these myths and in fact, I just came across one that says you’re having a boy if your nose is spreading. Now I don’t know about you but my nose has remained firmly fixed in the center (somewhat) of my face and has no plans of spreading to new and unchartered terrains. I’ll have to get someone to explain that to me because I have a big WTF written across my forehead at the moment.
So what myths have you heard?!
Check out my posts on all the things that Hollywood has lied to me about on childbirth here or why I hate being pregnant here. If you like what you’re reading then subscribe to my newsletter to keep up to date! Just click on the image below 🙂 xx
