Boy or Girl?

We are heading out to another baby appointment today, and the wife will get an ultrasound that MAY determine the gender of our baby (cross your fingers). Apparently the baby has to cooperate and be in a good position to find out, especially at this juncture of the pregnancy (18 2/3 weeks). If the baby's legs are crossed, we might have a difficult time making a proper determination. At the least, we'll get another picture of the growing baby and make sure he/she is coming along well.

The wife and I both agree that we don't have a preference if it's a boy or girl (or, girl or boy for the feminist crowd, haha). When I picture me with a child I have had images of a boy alongside me, as well as daydreams of a little girl holding my hand (please, no pervert comments). So I think I would be comfortable either way. We also have agreed that little boys are sort of terrors when young and grow to be calmer (you hope), while little girls are so sweet when young then grow into teens and the "women issues" start coming into play.

From stories I have heard over the years, including some from both our families, it seems girls and their moms go through some sort of "I hate you" phase and just can't seem eye to eye for a while. This is basically because they are more alike than they care to admit, in my opinion. Eventually they come around, though it might not be for a few years, in some cases, and finally the women start respecting each other. I don't know if boys go through this with their mothers or fathers. Obviously there are differences over the years but I don't recall hearing of any major differences that took such a long time to mend.

My wife LOVES all the clothes available for little girls, while she sees all the boys stuff as similar, like a lot of jeans and shirts. I know she's not seeing having a girl as an accessory, but I worry having a little girl would be rough on the proverbial pocketbook after hearing a lot of "This is SO CUTE" when we are out looking at baby stuff. This doesn't make me want a boy more, but dressing him might be easier.

So I'm really hoping we can learn today what we'll be given in February, boy or girl. It will be nice to decorate for one or the other, and whittling down our baby names list will be a load off my mind. While I enjoy daydreaming about my potential little boy or girl now, being able to focus on one will allow me to map out the kid's first 18 years all in one sitting ;)