Gender Bender

According to a highly scientific gender prediction quiz on www.childbirth.org I have an 82% chance of having a girl.

The quiz is made up of 23 old wives' tales including such gems as “A baby girl steals her mothers' looks” (which would explain the lack of Glow) as well as some I'd never heard of before like “If you pick up a mug by its handle you'll have a boy, pick it up by the body of the mug, you'll have a girl.” I went and picked up a mug to check and I pick it up from the rim – does this mean I'll have an intersex baby?

Its the question I get asked on a daily basis (the gender, not if it'll be intersex). People want to know two things; when I'm due, and if its a boy or a girl. At the moment I'm still two long weeks away from being able to tell, but my answer of “its too early” is met with “are you going to find out?” This is the bit I'm struggling with. The thing is I can't decide if I want to know or not. I'm the type of person who has to know everything, and I hate surprises (birthdays and Christmas bring a mixture of emotions for me) but I'm seriously toying with the idea of not finding out.

I'd like to think knowing wouldn't affect the way I decorate the nursery or dictate the colour of the jumpsuits I buy. Gender-neutral is becoming a buzz word in this household because of my belief that a child should be able to grow up in to the adult it was meant to be, not what society forced on it. And yes, I know painting walls pink or blue has almost nothing to do with the adult psyche, but it has to start somewhere! So by not knowing I'm forced to stay gender neutral and I'll be less likely to be swayed by the 'adorable frilly dress' or 'oh so cute sailor outfit' (do they actually exist?).

I've already started referring to Tricky as a he, purely for ease of conversation, and I'm afraid if I have a girl, for the first three months I'll refer to her as he, just through force of habit.