A Royal Womb With A View

Is Baby Cambridge a boy?

Is Baby Cambridge a girl?

Will the baby have red hair?

Is he/she alone in there?

If only we could see inside the royal womb and discover these answers ahead of time. Like his/her father, this fetus - no larger than the size of a lime - is not cooperating. Doesn't he/she realize that people expect these answers because it is in the public interest to know?

The interest in the royal baby to be is understandable. But like everything else to do with Baby Cambridge's parents, there is a gross sense of entitlement to know everything, no matter how mundane. Just look at the furore over not knowing the name of the family dog, Lupo. What was the couple hiding? After all, they can't have it both ways, now can they? Catherine finally put reporters out of their misery by revealing the dog's name. How long will the couple be allowed to keep the baby's name to themselves before they're accused of not playing nicely?

Much like the Queen allowing her coronation to be televised, the birth of this baby could set a precedent. The media may have missed the conception but there are other firsts to be had. The first future monarch to have their #royalbirth live tweeted. Imagine if William and Catherine allowed cameras into the delivery room! Royal commentators in hushed tones providing live updates through each contraction. Just picture it.

Commentator: Just how far along is she?

Midwife guest: Well, it's hard to tell how many centimetres dilated she is from our vantage point, but labor seems to be progressing rather slowly. We could be here a while.

Commentator: Is is normal for women to make so much noise during childbirth?

Midwife guest: Yes, some women make more, some less...

Commentator: OK, while we're waiting, do you think Catherine will breastfeed?..

Midwife guest: Well...

Too much information? Or not enough? This is a future monarch we're dealing with. Who draws the line in the sand for Baby Cambridge's privacy?  The media? The parents?

If Baby Cambridge is overdue, the speculation may be one of the reasons why.

© Marilyn Braun 2012

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Catherine Cambridge is pregnant! Geneologists, doulas and ravenous media, oh my!

Catherine Cambridge is finally pregnant. For real this time. Is it a boy? Girl? Yes, one of them. Twins? Triplets? Too early to tell. One thing is for certain. It is now open season on Royal Baby Cambridge.

As any expectant parent can attest to, there is no shortage of people willing and eager to offer unsolicited advice. Now magnify this unsolicited advice by a thousand and you have Catherine's pregnancy, where genealogists, authors, astrologers, ravenous media, midwives and doulas will all weigh in at one point or another about every aspect of her pregnancy. It has already started with news of Catherine's hospitalization for hyperemesis gravidarum (aka severe morning sickness). The hospital is reportedly surrounded by the worlds media eager for any scrap of news to report on, regardless of how minor it might be to the rest of the world.

In the months to come we will get medical reports, we will hear about Kate's stylish maternity fashions, the effect of the pregnancy on her physical appearance will be used to predict the sex. Is she carrying high or low? Will she have a home birth? Cesarean? Natural childbirth? Will William be present at the birth or will duty call him away? Will she breastfeed? (Cue the disapproving experts if she doesn't) How will she decorate the nursery? Will she suffer from postnatal depression? Not to mention the speculation about royal baby's future name and title. Mark my words, every angle of this pregnancy will be wrung for all it is worth.

They may not realize it yet but yesterday was the very last day of privacy for Royal baby Cambridge. We can only hope that William and Catherine made the most of it.

© Marilyn Braun 2012

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.