Top 10 Reasons to Keep the Baby's Gender a Surprise

After last week's post on the Top 10 Reasons to Find Out the Baby's Gender, I thought it was only fair to play devil's advocate and give you the flip side.

Top 10 Reasons to Keep the Baby's Gender a Surprise

1. Surprises are underrated.

2. Control is overrated. 

3. Practicality.  When the baby's gender is unknown, practical gift giving is the name of the game. Bottles and diapers are must haves for all babies.

4. Extra Motivation.  I've heard from more than one mother that not knowing the baby's gender gave her extra motivation to push on the big day.  Not only did she want to meet her baby (of course), but she was incredibly eager to find out the gender.

5. Avoidance of Tacky Gender Stereotypes.  Some parents are into pink lace for girls and blue corduroy for boys.  Some aren't.  For the latter, keeping the baby's gender a surprise will help avoid getting hyper gender specific gifts that aren't wanted in the first place.

6. Tempering Expectations.  It's easy to associate gender with certain life paths, career wise and otherwise.  This sort of dreaming can create severe and often superficial expectations before the baby is even born (i.e. baby girl is going to be a ballerina with long brown hair).  When you don't know the baby's gender you focus on more neutral, genuine expectations (i.e. baby is going to be smart with a great sense of humor).

7. The Guessing Game.  Examining all the wives' tales and using the Chinese Gender Predictor is good wholesome fun.  Friends and family can even get a baby pool going.  What's a baby pool?  I'll tell you: everyone throws a nominal amount of money in the pot and guesses the baby's gender, due date and weight.  Person who guesses correct gender and due date wins.  Closest weight guess breaks a tie. 

8. Older Generation Digs It.  While peers may think you're nutso for not taking advantage of technology, your parents' generation and beyond will give you kudos.  After all, your grandparents didn't even have the option to find out and they got along just fine.

9. Nursery Dilemmas.  For those who live in one bedroom apartments or studios, the baby's nursery won't be a space of its own.  Rather, it's part of shared space.  This means that the nursery decor must vibe with the entire living space - pink elephant curtains and blue airplane wall decals probably won't work.  Keeping the style mature and unisex is much easier when the baby's gender is unknown.

10. It Doesn't Matter.  Boy or girl, your baby is money.