Katie & Justin

It’s time to place your bets! Will we use the blue ribbon or the pink ribbon on the bassinet? (Luckily ours came with options!)

My friends are unanimous in thinking Baby D is a boy while all the relatives we’ve heard from, on both my side and Justin’s side, all say girl. For some reason I’ve been thinking girl, too, whereas Justin is predicting boy.

So who will be right? I consulted Google (naturally), but the results are mixed.

It’s a boy because…

• My belly is round, like a basketball
• I gained weight in my thighs more than anywhere else
• My age at conception added to the month of conception equals an odd number
• I sleep on my left side
• I did not have headaches

It’s a girl because…

• My skin is less clear than usual
• Justin lost weight
• I crave sweets and/or ice
• I’m carrying the baby high
• My feet are not any colder than usual

There is, of course, one sure-fire way of finding out — and I’m not talking about the ultrasound! Some may consider it another old wives’ tale, but the needle trick is the real deal!

That’s where you string a needle with thread and then hold it above your wrist to see how it moves. If it swings back and forth, it’s a boy and if it moves around in a circle, it’s a girl.

Many moons ago my mom and her sisters did it before they had kids — and it ended up being correct for all of them. We were talking about it a few weeks ago while having a game night with my cousins, so we decided to try it out then.

Both my mom and my aunt did it — and again it worked every time! For my mom, that meant it changed back and forth from girl to boy five separate times! How is that even possible?! And then for my aunt, it very clearly showed girl, girl, boy, boy — stopping in between before changing patterns. How could that be???

It was so freaky, my cousins and I all let out a loud screech each time it was “done” because the needle just stopped moving all together. At that point, I was too scared to try it myself! I have made it this far without finding out, I don’t want to spoil the surprise now!

Instead, Emily gave it a go. For her, it showed a girl and then a boy. It did something a little weird for boy that made us think she might actually be having twin boys!

Caitlin also tried it, and she got boy and then girl (even though she was really rooting for a girl to come first!). Colleen was reluctant initially — scared like me, haha — but she eventually gave it a shot and got girl, girl, boy. Ginny wasn’t there that night but after hearing our stories she tried it another day and got one girl followed by five boys!

I’m still too weirded out to try it now, but maybe after this baby arrives I’ll change my mind.

For now, I’m sticking with the green ribbon on the bassinet!