This is so silly!!

[punky]

Old Wives Tales
How to Tell If You're Having a Boy or a Girl
What Old Wives Tales have you heard about that are "the definitive way" to tell if you're having a boy or girl? If you've already delivered, was the theory correct? For example, my husband had heard that if the mom's left breast is bigger than the right breast during pregnancy, she's having a girl; if the right breast is bigger, she's having a boy. If they're the same size, it could be anything. Based on his theory, I should have a boy and a girl. I have two boys so this particular tale was 50% correct. That's a pretty good average for an Old Wives Tale! You'll notice that some of these Old Wives Tales will contradict each other too! And please don't ask us about what kind of Draino. (These are just for fun and not scientific.) We don't know and if you try this, PLEASE BE CAREFUL!

Check out our other OWT surveys on starting labor and craziest tales.

From Loop . . . Pull down the skin under your left eye and look at your eyeball (the white part). If you see a vein that looks like a V or branches, you will be having a girl.

From Susan . . . Have the mother-to-be pick up a a single key. If she picks it up by the round part it will be a boy. If she picks up the long narrow part it will be a girl. If she picks it up in the middle she is supposedly having twins. According to this I will have a son come May.

From Renee' . . . We told our UltraSound technician that we don't want to know in advance, but that we're having fun guessing. She told us to take a poll among 5-year old children. She says their accuracy is uncanny. If you can't trust the US Technician, who can you trust?!

From Shannon . . . If the expectant mother is eating and coughs, ask her to pick a number, then match the number to the corresponding alphabet letter, eg: A=1, B=2, C=3 etc, then ask her to pick a name starting with that letter. If the name she picks is a girls name, it will be a girl, boys name, boy. I should have a girl . . .

From Candy . . . I was told just today that with subsequent babies, the sex is determined by the previous child's first word. If s/he says mama first, it will be a girl and if s/he says dada first it will be a boy. I have more research to do but this worked for my cousin. I want a girl but according to this, I guess when we get pregnant with our second, we will have another boy!

From Beth . . . Here's another one for you... I found this when I was preparing my sister-in-law's shower. The Mayans determined the sex of the baby by taking the mother's age at conception, and the year of conception. If both are even or both are odd...it's a girl. If one is even and one odd it's a boy. This worked for most everyone in the group. I have tried it several places.

From Kate . . . Before conceiving my fourth child (after 3 daughters), I tried the salty diet and it worked!!! Baby #4 was a boy. I have never been one to eat salty foods or to use salt when cooking, but 3 months before conception I started eating everything salty I could get my hands on. This diet must be started before conception (but do not do this if you are on a salt restricted diet). If you want a girl eat lots of sweets. My daughter, who is in her 9th month, ate lots of salty foods before conception and my grandson is due March 7!!!!!! Good luck.


From Vicky . . . Well I don't know if this fits just yet. But I am planning on a pregnancy and have tried many old wives tales to try and ensure that this child will be a girl. (I already have a beautiful boy). I have put a wooden spoon and a pair of scissors under my bed, and a pink bow under my pillow. I went as far as buying a book of old wives tales. I hope they work! Regardless of the outcome I will be happy with whatever I get! )
From Christie K . . . When I was pregnant with my daughter, I was told by an old man I work with to eat a clove of garlic. If the smell of garlic seeped out of my pores, it was a boy. If it wasn't detected at all, it was a girl. I never tried it because. . . well, would YOU eat a clove of garlic?

From Maryann . . . Go by your parents history. What did your mother have? What position are you in the children. . . 1, 2, 3rd. If you are the first born, you will have what your mother had but starting with the second, then third, then first. If you are the middle child, you will have 3, 2, 1. But if you are the last child, you will have exactly what you mother had. Now add your hubby or the father. I will use my family. My mother had John (26), Pam (25), and Maryann (24-me). My mother-in-law had David (37), Laura (36), and my hubby Michael (26). You have to go by which side of the family you followed closer to. You won't know this till after the second child. Since my hubby and I were the last ones born in our families, we would have 1, 2, 3. Since both sides had a boy, we had a boy first, then a girl (and both sides had girls within a year). Now we are pregnant again, and since I didn't wait 10 years, I would be following my mother more closely so this one will be a girl, like my mother had. I hope this made sense . . .

From Pearl . . . I heard that whoever is more aggressive at the time of conception, the child will be the opposite of that sex . . . might be true, we have two boys!!

From Kally . . . One wives' tale I heard when I was pregnant was if your legs resemble tree trunks, it's a boy. If they are trim and fit, it's a girl. Well this was wrong . . . my legs got huge and deformed, and I have a beautiful little girl.

From Debbie . . . After a week camping with my 76 year old grandmother she told me she knew I was going to have a girl for this reason: when a woman is pregnant with a girl she will be crabby (to put it nicely) because all women are crabs and if you have one inside you are twice so. If you are pregnant with a boy you are happy and smiling because you have a little peter inside you for 9 months (her exact words)! She cracked me up she was embarrassed while she told it. We'll see in April, it agreed with the Drano test.

From MZ . . . One, if you crave the heels of bread, you will have a boy; if you like the middle, a girl is on the way. If your hands start to get dry and chapped, it will be a boy; but if your hands are softer now, it will be a girl. You eat more if you are pregnant with a boy. You are more nauseated with a girl. I haven't had my baby yet, and we are not going to find out what the sex is until due date!

From Sheri . . . I am five months pregnant with my third child. I have two boys, and I carried them both differently. Trevor was low and all out front. Jacob was in the middle and wide. The one thing that I had in common while pregnant with both boys was I loved being pregnant. I was barely sick and never moody. I loved it. This time, my third, I am 22 weeks along and still sick. I am so moody that I could cry at a comedy if I wanted to. I am tired and not enjoying this pregnancy at all. I have heard that if you are sick more and moody, it is a girl. We hope so, but only time will tell.

From Lisa C . . . I don't know the gender of my unborn baby but if I took all the old wives tales I've heard into consideration, I'd have to conclude it will be a boy. The first one I heard was, "I can't tell you're pregnant from the back so it must be a boy; with a girl you'd be pregnant all over!" The next one I heard was, "You are carrying low; it's a boy, girls are carried high" and my favorite one was, "Do you crave sweet foods or salty foods?" and when I replied,"salty" the response was again, "It's a boy, if it was a girl you would crave desserts." All this leads me to believe I'll be delivering a girl!!!

From Kim . . . This is my second child, and I am always amazed at how fun it is for others to guess at the gender of my new baby. It can be fun hearing all of their rationale for their decisions. One of the more interesting stories that I have run across is the "Ancient Chinese Gender Chart." I was so curious I found one on the web. It is based on the female's age at conception and the month conceived. I checked it out and it was accurate for my first child, so who knows?

From SPust . . . I will not be finding out the sex of my baby for another week. However since my pregnancy I have had a terrible acne break out on my face and chest. I have been told that this means I am having a girl and creating a larger number of hormones for a female.

From Bettina . . . We've heard the OWT that a girl will "sap" her mama's beauty . . . or a girl will make you more nauseous. For the life of us, we can only come up with boys' names, although we would love either a boy or a girl. Somehow the name thing seems like it's telling us something.

From Stefanie . . . A friend of my mother's told me to urinate in a glass or jar with a tablespoon of Drain-o in it. If the mixture was green, it meant a girl; if the mixture turned blue, it was a boy. I tried this, and it turned green. I did have a girl, and so did my mom's pregnant friend (her mixture was green, too) but I'm still skeptical of this OWT!

From Lisa H . . . I've also heard about carrying boys low and girls high . . . which was right on both of my children. There is also the ring test where you suspend the woman's wedding ring on a chain over her belly. If it swings back and forth, it's a girl. If it swings around in circles, it's a boy. I tried this on four pregnant friends a few years ago and all but one was right.

From Nancy (mother of two *daughters*) . . . Both times, everyone seemed to know I was having a boy. The way I was carrying, the baby's heart rate, how big I was, how big they expected the baby to be . . . The only thing that was to the contrary were my (very few) dreams - always about baby girls.

From Johna . . . I heard that if the mother-to-be trips or falls over her own feet during pregnancy, it's a boy. If the mother is graceful, it will be a girl. I don't see how it's true since my mother has two girls and one boy, and she tripped with the girls only.

From dsandey . . . I've heard that if the heartbeat is high it will be a girl, and if it is low it will be a boy.

From Michelle . . . My mother-in-law shared an old wives tale with my husband and I since we are expecting our first baby. She claims that if you hold a gold chain with a medallion, over the expectant mother's palm, you can determine the sex of the baby. If the medallion moves in a circular motion, it will be a girl. If it moves back and forth in a line, it will be a boy. She tested her theory on me, and it predicted that I will have a boy. Today, my doctor said that the sex of our baby is 95% sure to be a boy. Neat! She claims that this theory also works on women who already have children. The first time will show the sex of the first born; the second time, the second born . . . and so on. Try it and see if it works for you!!

From Kristina . . . I've heard that if you're carrying more of the baby in front, it's a boy. If you're carrying the baby in your hip and rear area, it's a girl.

From Olivia0317 . . . I heard that if a toddler boy shows interest in a pregnant woman, the mom-to-be is going to have a girl. If he ignores the pregnant woman, she will have a boy. My nephew had shown very little interest in me until I became pregnant. Then once I was pregnant, he began to follow me around whenever he saw me. I have a 3 month old girl, and my nephew adores her, but alas he ignores me once again. Coincidence? From Lisa . . . I've actually heard a number of Old Wives Tales (OWT) for determining the sex of your baby. The one I grew up with was the way the mother carries the child. If it's a girl, she'll carry her up front and high; if it's a boy, she'll carry him "all around" and down low.

Another OWT, the side the mother prefers to lay on when resting: left if it's a boy, right if it's a girl.

My favorite OWT: ask the mother to show you her hands. If she shows them palms up, it's a girl; palms down, a boy.

From Debra . . .I was told that if you carry low you will have a boy and that if you carry high you will have a girl. I was carrying low, and I had a boy. My boss however appeared to me to carry high and she had a boy so . . .

From Jennifer . . .I've been told that if you are 'carrying' high it will be a boy and if you're carrying low it will be a girl!? If so I'll be having a girl.

[flea]

DEBBIE definitely had the best one!!!!

[fairymommy]

You know... I say that with triplets the odds are pretty good that at least some of these will be right. I think I have at least one girl and one boy in there! Humm at least I hope so!
Tammie

[AtoZduo]

How fun!
I personally like Pearls the best... hehehe...

Andrea

[babyluv]

Have to say, carried low and ate salty with my boy.
With my girl carried high, pigged out on chocolate and was grouchy for 9 months.

And now, .....My son loves chocolate but not as much as his sister!!! PHEW!! Nothing that girl won't do for chocolate!!

babluv

[LynnUS]

TOo funny!
I am really crabby but I don't have the branch thing going on in my left eye!

Whatever!

Lynn

[Aleks]

This is way too funny, all these tales..... I don't fit most of them and I did not with my dd. When I got pg with my dd, my mother said: " I KNOW YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A GIRL BECAUSE OUR FAMILY GENES ARE STONGER THAN IN YOUR DH FAMILY!: And funny things is she was right. Add that to the Old Wives Tales...

Aleks
15 wks today!

[punky]

My mother is convinced I am having a girl...her theory:
Her son was born in February. He just had a son in February.
Her daughter (me) was born in August. I am due in August and she thinks her daughter will have a daughter in August.
Cute!!

[wintak]

Very cool wives tales

Based on those that I can do, it leans more towards a girl. But definitely has some boy characteristics.

I've been crabby (nice word) and out of my mind with exhaustion and can't quit the sugar consumption.

We shall see!

Amy

[Lindey]

well now i am just confused LOL i have NO idea