Moms Talk: Boy, Girl or Total Surprise?

When my (now ex-) husband and I saw that faint second line show up on the pregnancy test six years ago this month, we were elated! We went out and bought all the baby books, surprised our family and friends with the news and set up appointments with the OB/GYN.

When I had an ultrasound at 20 weeks gestation, the technician showed us our baby on the screen and asked, "Would you like to know the gender?" we both answered – without skipping a beat – yes!

She highlighted what was apparently his little boy parts on the screen and congratulated us; we'd named him before we even left the office, and before we got to the car, we had already called our parents to tell them they would have a grandson.

But not everybody wants to know what they are having before delivery.

My cousin, who just gave birth to her third child two months ago, chose not to find out the gender of their baby until he was born. Interestingly, they did learn the gender of their first two – both girls – but she said they wanted the last one to be a surprise.

On the flip side, I've also known parents who asked to know the gender of their last child during pregnancy so they knew which toys and clothing to keep or donate, and so they could figure out what they still needed to acquire.

So, Patch wants to know: Did you wait until delivery or did you have to know earlier?