If you’re expecting a baby now, be glad this won’t happen to you. I turned 30 a few months back, and when my mom was pregnant with me, ultrasounds were still in the trial phase. She didn’t have an ultrasound. No one she knew had an ultrasound.
Sure, she measured large—very large in fact. She could walk around with a plate on her stomach hands free. But at the age of 19 and very petite, she only weighed 100 pounds when she got pregnant. So it made sense she’d look huge. Yes, she felt a lot of movement, but she just assumed she had a rascally little boy fluttering around. The doctor heard one heart beat and apparently never suspected a thing.
Two weeks before her due date, my mom went into labor. The night before she’d been out boogie dancing (that’s my mom!). After a drug-free labor (because epidurals weren’t offered then), I was born. Suddenly, the doctor cried out, “Oh my goodness, there’s another one!” and 8 minutes later my twin sister was born.
My parents were stunned to say the least. My dad walked into the waiting room and said nothing—he just held up two fingers. We came home from the hospital on my dad’s 21st birthday. Barely adults themselves, my parents now had two babies to care for. Luckily, they got a lot of clothes from family and friends when they found out there were two babies coming home rather than one. Still, I can’t imagine not knowing!
I’m impatient. I’ve always loved the idea of not knowing the sex of my babies, but I just couldn’t do it. If I can know I want to know. What about you? Do you choose to be surprised or to know?