The sex of a human baby is determined by the composition of its sex chromosomes (a single distinct pair among humans' 23 pairs of chromosomes). Females possess two copies of the same chromosome (referred to as the 'X' chromosome); males have one copy of the X chromosome and one copy of the smaller, hook-shaped Y chromosome.
When fertilization occurs, the new gamete (the initial cell from which a fetus grows) always inherits one of the mother's X chromosomes, and either an X or a Y from the father, depending on which chromosome the fertilizing sperm cell happened to inherit. One could say, then, that the father—or, at least, his sperm—determines the sex of the child. On the other hand, the first sperm to reach the egg isn't necessarily the one that fertilizes it; human eggs are rather choosy about that sort of thing. So, in an indirect way, the maternal parent also has some influence on the sex of the child.
Thanks, infoplease.com. Thanks for NOTHING.So, basically, it's all my fault (that's me, Ethan), but we're having BOY NUMBER THREE. Holy cow.
- Three boys to send on missions.
- Three boys I hope don't get drafted into the military the day they turn 18.
- Three boys to keep away from less-than-awesome, yet super cute girls.
- Three boys to keep from doing even HALF the stupid stuff I did when I was younger.
- Three boys to ruin everything nice that Rachel's worked to make nice in the house.
- Three boys to try to convince at an early age to not want to take up playing the violin, saxophone, trumpet, piccolo, or xylophone.
- Three boys to borrow the car, jump speed bumps going like 87 mph with groups of friends and, when asked why the car just doesn't seem right, they respond, "Golly, Dad, I just don't know what could have happened?!"
- Three boys to run away from the coppers.
- Three boys to run the risk of leaning Nascar or Motocross and not normal sports.
- Three boys to try to get through school without failing (they ARE their dad's offspring, now).
- Three boys to get married in the temple and live good, wholesome lives.
It's a little overwhelming.
Let's just say that every technique out there for having this NOT happen is nothing but a big load of crap.
Rachel is holding up well. We were both a little deflated upon hearing the news, but all will be just fine. The good, and most important, news is that the baby is looking quite healthy and normal (I know; ultrasounds aren't always fool proof, but we're happy with what we heard). The ultrasound tech said that he will have bulging biceps, be potty trainable at 18 months, have blonde hair and one blue and one green eye (weird, I know), probably need braces, be able to catch venison and other creeping animals with his bare hands, be only able to blink with one eye (I can blink with both eyes -- no problem), be an average 5 foot 8 inches tall, and be able to hold his pee for more than two days straight.
So, all in all, things are looking OK for us. Due date is in March. The fact of all of this is this: God's in charge and he knows whom to send to us and when. We just hope we can do our part to not mess everything else up.
