Should you find out the gender of the baby?

Around week 20 of pregnancy, you will be able to have an ultra sound to determine the sex of your baby if you wish. 

Like so many aspects of pregnancy, whether or not to determine the gender of your baby before it is born is completely up to the couple.   There is no right or wrong way to do this.   Whatever decision you make, be prepared to listen to people tell you that you did it the right or wrong way.  All you can do is prepare your reaction to unwanted opinions.  I have heard of mothers being harassed both for knowing the gender and for not knowing the gender of their unborn baby.  

Some facts:
-In the area where I live, about 90% of expectant mothers will know the sex of their baby before they are born.   
-It is possible to have an ultrasound technician tell you are going to have a girl and you actually end up with a boy.
-It is also possible to have an ultrasound technician tell you that you are going to have a boy but you end up with a girl (this is very rare).
-Your baby’s gender is determined at the moment of conception, not at the 20 week mark.
-Mothers with severe morning sickness are more likely to have girl babies or multiples.
-When people find out you’re pregnant the very first thing they want to know is if you are having a boy or a girl.  If you know the gender they want to know why you know the gender- could you not wait?  If you don’t know the gender they want to know your personal philosophy behind not knowing the gender. 

Some myths:
-You can tell the gender of the baby by the baby’s level of activity (Oh, an active baby!  Has to be a boy!).
-You can tell the gender of the baby by the shape of mom’s belly (Oh you are carrying very round.  Must be a girl!). 
-You can tell the gender of the baby based on food cravings (sweet food = a girl, spicy foods = a boy).
-If you already have 3 boys the likely hood of you having a girl on the next pregnancy increases.

I did not find out the gender of my first born.  If (more like when) I have more kids, I will wait to determine the gender again.  The moment my mom called out “It’s a boy!” is something I will never forget.  For me and my husband, not knowing was super fun!  I started messing with people- when they asked me what I was having I said “A baby”.  Evil I know.  Not knowing also kept my spending in check- when you don’t know the gender; you might wait to get a lot of items.  In the end you discover that you might not need 50 newborn outfits after all.