To Find Out...or Not?

FYI: This is post pretty much all about 'p' stuff.

A week from tomorrow, I go in for my BIG ultrasound, where I will hopefully find out that Butters is perfectly healthy and isn't missing any important parts! I just received my AFP results yesterday, and everything was 'negative.' (yay!) My Dr's office left a message on my machine, so I don't have any further details. Anyhoo, I won't be finding out at next week's appointment whether Butters is a boy or a girl because I made a deal with DH.

I have always wanted to find out ahead of time what we were having - even before I was 'p'. DH has always wanted to wait until the delivery date, and neither of us has been able to change each other's minds. He wants to be 'surprised'.... well so do I, I just want my surprise earlier! It's still a surprise, no matter when you find out, plus you can plan ahead a little. My acupuncturist tried to tell me how great it was to wait... how people had to wait until the delivery date before there was all this medical technology, and this technology just ruins the excitement, the suspense when the baby is being born and you first see the head, etc (he has a daughter). I of course pointed out to him that without medical technology, I wouldn't even be in this situation! Plus, I just don't buy into all the romanticism that he was putting on the birth process - I'll probably be sweaty, impatient and just wanting Butters out of me - either that or my body won't cooperate and I'll wind up needing a c-section and all the glory of the vaginal birth will be gone out the window anyway.

Can you tell that I'm a little stubborn?! Anyway, for all of you out there who think waiting to find out the baby's gender until the delivery date is the way to go - that's great. I admire your patience! It's just not for me.

So anyway, DH has been unable to convince me that I should wait until October to find out Butters' gender, (and I have to add... as negative as it may sound.... assuming everything works out... I can't help but always think that...) and I haven't been able to convince him that I am, of course right. *wink* So why am I not finding out at next week's ultrasound? After all, the pregnant woman should get her way, right?!

DH asked that, as a temporary compromise, we at least don't find out until my SIL delivers in mid-July. She is not finding out her baby's gender until then, and since she is having the first grandchild (DH has only one sibling) he thinks we shouldn't butt in ahead of her and announce what we are having before she does. I am totally fine with that, so I agreed. DH hopes that by that point, I'll decide to wait... I guess that could happen, though I'm thinking that I'll be tackling the Dr. at the next appointment and wanting to know. A friend suggested that we ask that they write down the gender next week and give it to us in a sealed envelope. I kind of like the sealed envelope idea... then I can steam it open in private and peek! (just kidding!)

I guess after knowing all the intimate details from day one - from my follicle sizes, to the picutre of Butters as a blastocyst, to the early ultrasounds - it's natural to then want to find out the gender. Or perhaps I'm just impatient? Now how do I brainwash DH into agreeing with me? ;-)