Baby Buzz

As a pregnant woman have you ever gazed down at your growing belly, wondering what your baby was going to look like?

A fun new Web site ahababy.com that's devoted entirely to pregnancy issues has a tool that can offer some insight on whether your little bundle of joy will have her dad's big brown eyes or mom's blond curly hair.

The Web site, which began last June, is hoping to create a following among parents who are frustrated and perhaps intimidated by other sites. Ray Tenenbaum, the site's founder said the number one problem of other sites is that parents can't find what they're looking for, that the sites "don't provide all the answers to all of their questions" on pregnancy.

To increase traffic at the site, AHA! Baby now offers "sneak-a-peek," where expecting parents can download their photos and then through information technology magic, find out what their baby may look like.

To see how it would work, I downloaded a photo of myself and my husband and waited for the results. I already had a handy reference-my son is two and a half now, so I knew what he looked like as a baby. To be honest, the compilation the "sneak-a-peek" produced was fairly accurate in depicting the coloring and shape of Alex's newborn head. However, the eyes didn't turn out right, and that was probably my fault.

Here's a hint: When you do the sneak-a-peak, download front profile photos of yourself and your spouse. The photo I submitted was a side profile of Josh, my husband. When I get a better front profile photo of him, I'll definitely try this again.

This was a fun exercise to be sure, but as I was conducting the experiment, some niggling thoughts came to mind. What if you're a single mother and the father was a sperm donor? You can't download his photo. And what if a same-sex couple wants to try this?

Tenenbaum emphasized the results of the sneak-a-peak aren't scientific. And maybe that's a good thing. Four years ago, my dark-haired, dark-eyed friend and fair-haired husband had a baby girl with bright red hair and blue eyes. No technology would have foreseen that!

Jennifer Lubell is a healthcare reporter in Washington, D.C., and mom to 2-year-old Alex (who looks just like Mom).