We don’t know yet if we’re going to find out the baby’s sex before birth, or if we’ll share it even if we do find out! But we’ve been having lots of fun guessing in the meantime. Below we try out a few of the old wive’s tales when it comes to gender prediction and testing.

Do you think we’re team blue or team pink? Let me know your predictions in the comments. 

Disclaimer: these are light-hearted old wive’s tales and are never going to replace accurate medical gender testing using either NIPT or anatomy ultrasound. 

Chinese Gender Calendar – Inconclusive

So far I have taken four of these prediction tests. The first said ‘Boy’, the second said ‘Girl’, the third said ‘Boy’ and the fourth said ‘Girl’… Should I go for best of five?? 

We could be doing this all the way through the pregnancy…! 

Note: this picture suggests a girl… 

Ring test – Girl

This one was kinda fun and I went for best of three (for science obviously…) each time the ring went round in a circle. The story is that if the rings swings back and forth you’re having a boy, but if it moves round in a circular motion you’re having a girl. 

Nub Theory – Inconclusive

I couldn’t see a nub on our early scans, baby was in a difficult position. So no way to tell if it was pointing up or down. 

Heart rate – Girl 

At our second scan (at 9w5d, the first one where the heart beat was audible) the heart rate was 146 bpm, which is at the low end of the ‘girl range’, the theory is that a heartbeat of 140+ is a girl and less is a boy. At our third scan (at 14w4d) the heart rate had increased to 152 bpm. Could it be a girl baby in there? 

Cravings – Inconclusive

The theory is that if you’re experiencing savoury/salty cravings then you’re having a boy. And if you’re having sweet/sugary cravings then you’re expecting a girl. 

I keep saying that I have been craving olives and marmite which would suggest a bouncing boy baby. But, I have also noticed that I have been looking for way more chocolate and sweet treats recently (hello chocolate chip cookies) – when I usually don’t have a sweet tooth at ALL! So I’m going to say that it’s a tie! 

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Moody vs. Mellow – Girl

Allegedly if you’re moodier during your pregnancy you’re said to be carrying a baby girl, and if you’re more laid back it’s a boy. 

I have been really struggling with my mood swings so far (the husband has too), so this test would point firmly towards a baby daughter. 

Pregnancy Glow – Girl

My skin has been uncharacteristically terrible since the very beginning of my pregnancy which supposedly points to a baby girl. Boys are supposedly responsible for that pregnancy glow that’s escaping me, whereas girls are said to steal their mother’s beauty. It could be a girl baby responsible for all these spots or it could be all the chocolate I’ve been eating (see above.) 

Morning sickness or lack thereof – Boy

I’ve been lucky not to have any morning sickness which could indicate a little boy baby. You’re statistically more likely to experience hyperemisis graviderum when pregnant with a baby girl. 

Carrying high v Carrying low – Girl

It’s kind of hard to tell since I don’t really have much of a bump yet – but the bump I do have starts super high up. Allegedly you carry high for a girl and low for a boy. When my bump is bigger you can also check carrying wide (girl) vs. carrying narrow (boy). 

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Ramzi Method – Girl

Transvaginal: left = girl, right = boy Abdominal: right = girl, left = boy

My placenta and baby favoured the left side of the uterus which suggests a baby girl. I’ll be honest though – I really, really struggled to understand the transverse view, mirror image etc. with the different types of ultrasound along with how to distinguish which bit was the placenta. So I used the gender experts page to help me try to work it out. This one apparently has a 97% chance of being correct, so if (and that’s a pretty big if) I have deciphered it correctly, it could be a baby girl in there! 

Skull Theory – Girl

Apparently when you look at your scans you should pay attention to the shape of the skull as a clue to baby’s sex. Girl’s skulls are said to be more rounded and slightly tapered at the top, boys are allegedly more block like. I’m not entirely sure but I think it’s looking pretty round, so I’m saying possibly girl? 

See what you think… 

The Gender Experts results based on Ramzi method and Skull theory.

Baking soda test – Girl 

Fizzes = boy Flat = girl

I’ll spare you a photo – you’ll just have to take my word for it! The old wives tale dictates that when you mix a small amount of urine with baking soda you can tell if you’re having a boy or a girl. With a boy it fizzes and with a girl it is flat. Mine was very flat! 

This test feels like it has some science behind it (spoiler: it doesn’t) 

Urine colour – Girl

Another pee related test! Allegedly if your urine is darker and brighter you’re carrying a boy baby, if it’s lighter and dull or cloudy it’s a little girl. Mine has been consistently light and dull. Again, I’ll spare you a photo! Ugh…

Headaches – Girl

Extreme headaches can be a sign that you’re carrying a little boy as the increased testosterone is said to be responsible. Thankfully I am headache free – so this might point to a baby girl. 

Pupil Dilation – Girl

If you look into a mirror for one minute and carefully watch your pupils, notice if they dilate or remain the same size. If they dilate you’re said to be pregnant with a boy. I tried this three times (best of three) to account for different lighting etc. Each time my pupils remained exactly the same. 

The Mayan Calendar – Boy

Similar to the Chinese gender calendar in that it uses the mother’s age at conception and the date of conception. The Mayan’s calculated gender prediction by taking the mother’s age at conception and the year of conception. If both are even or odd the baby is said to be a girl. If one is even and the other is odd then it could be a baby boy. Since I’m 34 and conceived in 2019 this would point to a baby boy. 

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Gender Prediction Scores:

Girl – 11
Boy – 2
Inconclusive – 3 

So the scores are in and it is pointing to a little girl! Only time will tell whether any of these have a grain of truth to them… I suspect not!

Have you tried any of the old wive’s tales, just for fun? Please tell me how you got on!

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