Madame Zaritska

There are many resources online about pregnancy.  Some of them are great, some of them are horrid, and some of them are just plain silly fun. A few weeks ago I decided to join an online birthclub. (Basically it's a bunch of women who are all going to give birth in June.  And when I say a "bunch" what I am really saying is that the June 2011 birthclub has over 5000 members, so its more of a BUNCH.) People post all kinds of things, from the serious to the inane.  My favorites are the really great discussions about controversial topics when everyone remembers to be polite and respectful and you can read about multiple viewpoints.  My second favorites are the really great discussion about controversial topics where the gloves come off and people waver between making excellent points and being ridiculously rude and judgmental.  My least favorites, the ones I have absolutely just stopped reading are all of the "We were thinking about naming our child this, what do you think?" posts.  They usually all follow the same format in which the poster gives some names, some people write in "I love it!!" and then some other people write in about how "that is a horrible name to saddle your child with", then the original poster gets offended and there's a bunch of catty remarks from all sides. I can honestly say that I have learned some important things (two threads in particular spring to mind, one about cloth diapering and anther one about how to help your cats adjust).  I have even made a post or two, although for the most part I can be considered more of a "lurker" than a poster.  However, I will say that my "reading and time" effort input is definitely greater than the "information acquired" output.  For the most part it isn't educational so much as it is addicting!

However, through this foray into trying to be part of an online community I have come across a few websites that I think are pretty fun.

My favorite is the online eye color predictor from The Tech Museum.  You input you and your partner's eye colors, as well as some family member's eye colors, and it can predict what eye color you children will have.  I like this site in particular because it explains the genetics behind it and how it uses two different genes that are known to affect eye color to generate the results. (For any interested parties it can be found here: http://museum.thetech.org/ugenetics/eyeCalc/eyecalculator.html)  It turns out Jamie and I have a 33.33% chance of having a blue-eyed child and a 66.66% chance of having a green-eyed child.

Another predictor, not nearly so accurate, can be found with Madame Zaritska.  By just inputting a few choice bits of information such as your favorite type of movie and what kind of animal you last saw, Madame Zaritska can fortell what will happen on the day you give birth.  Are you ready for this? Are you prepared? Madame Zariska told me the following (drumroll please...)

The day you deliver, outside will be rainy. Your baby will arrive in the late afternoon. After a labor lasting approximately 18 hours, your child, a boy, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 9 pounds, 1 ounces, and will be 21 -1/2 inches long. This child will have dark gray eyes and some auburn hair

All I can say is...9 freaking pounds!?!