Since the day I found out I was pregnant, one of the biggest questions at the forefront of my mind has been: is this little one inside of me a boy or a girl? It’s been a long few months of waiting to find out. In the meantime, I’ve learned quite a few fun facts about baby boys and girls!

Boy/Girl Statistics

• Historically, about 106 boys were born for every 100 girls; this is thought to be nature’s way of compensating for the fact that males are more likely to be killed through conflicts.
• In the United States, baby boys have outnumbered girls every year since 1941.
• More recently, ratios have decreased slightly. One factor may be increased stress, as women under stress are thought to produce more girls than boys.

Pink and Blue

• For centuries, all babies wore practical white dresses, which could be pulled up to change diapers and were easy to bleach when they got dirty.
• Pastel baby clothes were introduced in the mid-1800s, but were not gender-specific.
• At the start of the twentieth century, pink was designated for boys, as it was closely related to the masculine shade of red. Blue was thought to be the more delicate, daintier color and was better suited for girls.
• During World War II, blue was used extensively for men’s uniforms and became associated as a more masculine color. Following the War, manufacturers settled on blue for boys and pink for girls.
• During the women’s liberation movement of the 1960s and 1970s, more unisex baby clothes came back into style.
• Pink and blue made a reappearance in the 1980s with the advent of prenatal testing.

Gender-Predicting Old Wives’ Tales

• If a mom is carrying a baby high, it’s a girl; if she’s carrying low, it’s a boy.
• Moms with lots of skin blemishes are more likely to be carrying a girl.
• Baby boys’ heart rates are generally under 140 BPM; girls have heart rates over 140.
• A mom craving sweets is carrying a girl, while salty and sour cravings indicate she’s carrying a boy.
• Moms of baby girls are more likely to experience morning sickness.

We learned this week that Old Wives’ Tales are just that—tales—because for me, every one of them was wrong! Last Friday we got a peek at little Baby J and discovered:

We are so excited that our firstborn will be a son, and hope he will one day be a great big brother to all of his little siblings. We can’t wait to meet our handsome little man in just a few short months!