Ovulation (and therefore, conception) occurs 14 days before your period is due. If you have a 28-day menstrual cycle — which is assumed by many healthcare providers — you most likely ovulated on day 14. If your cycle is a few days longer, you probably ovulated after day 14, and your baby may arrive a few days after your estimated due date.
Knowing how your ovulation date coincided with the potential for conception also may give you a hint as to the sex of the baby you're carrying. Author and physician Landrum Shettles says in his book, How to Choose the Sex of Your Baby: The Method Best Supported by Scientific Evidence (Doubleday), that the father should not have an ejaculation for the three days before the "target date" (a day or two before ovulation) if you're trying for a boy. If a girl is your goal, have intercourse regularly, but stop three days before ovulation.
The reasoning behind the Shettles method is that female and male sperm behave differently: female sperm are slower but live longer, while male sperm move faster and die younger.
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