Old Wive's Tales

Those that are pregnant or have been pregnant before, you know how much advice and “wisdom” that is shared whether solicited or unsolicited. :) Well, a lot of what people think is based on old wives tales, which are rarely supported by scientific facts. Now, we know not to put much if any stock in them as most of them are just for fun to guess the gender of the baby. I remember with Ryane a lot of the quizzes I took and such usually said it was 60% chance she was going to be a boy—so, I know their accuracy!

Well, to fill the time of pregnancy before we get to have THE sonogram, I thought I’d have a little fun and do some of the old wives tales myself or check into some. Here are some of the more common ones people talk about:

Chinese Calendar – says GIRL! It said girl with Ryane as well.

Heartbeat – based on old wives tale that if faster than 140, it’s a girl and slower than that, it’s a boy – last Dr. appt. was 162 – GIRL! I also found a website www.babybpm.com that you put in the exact day you are in your pregnancy and it said BOY! For fun, I went back and put some of Ryane’s in and she flip flopped a lot between boy and girl. It’s all for fun and to help pass the time.

Drano test – turned brown, says BOY! I’ll tell you this was pretty fun as it was totally like an 8th grade science class experiment. We did it outside and it bubbled and steamed forever! I can't imagine how toxic Drano is inside the house!

Wedding Ring Test – I did this one over my belly and over my wrist (depends on which tale you read) and both swung back and forth – says BOY! I remember doing this one with Ryane and the ring didn’t move at all.

So, that leaves us about 50/50 now whether we are having a boy or girl. :)

1st Dr. Appt

We had my first Dr. appt today. It was a bit long at 2 hours and stressful during most of it. After we answered the 1 billion health questions, Dr. Waite used her doppler to search for a heartbeat. After some searching, she couldn't locate it so she contacted the sonogram techs. to get us right in. After a LONG wait, which seemed like probably 3x as long as it probably was, we were off to the sonogram room. The tech immediately located the baby and we got to see the STRONG BEAUTIFUL heart beating away. Of course this brought joyful tears to my eyes. I really didn't want to think the worst, but Matthew and I have been down that road before 2 years ago with a different outcome. I much prefer today!

Our little baby was SO cute in there. We could see the nubby arms and legs just moving away. You could even see the little fingers reaching up. The Dr. said the baby looks great and right on schedule. I just thinking the baby just wanted his/her picture taken – MY kind of baby! :)

During the sonogram, the heartbeat was measured at 162bpm and sounded perfect. According the Dr., my estimated due date is June 20th, which is close to my calculation of June 19th. It's all just an estimate anyhow, right?! According to the websites, our 12wk baby is 2.5-3.5 inches long and 12-14grams. The head still takes up almost half the length, which you can definitely see in our sonogram pictures. All the baby's systems, structures, and organs are fully formed, just growing. This week reflexes are forming. In a few more weeks, I might be able to feel some of those reflex movements and kicks.




Belly Pictures