What Traits Will Your Kid Inherit?

Hair Color

My husband's blond hair pales next to my bright-red locks. Will our baby inherit my bolder color?

No guarantees, of course, but you might indeed get another carrot-top if there's a redhead on your husband's side; if not, your striking color will stand out alone in the family (though you might get a strawberry blond). "A true redhead must have two copies of a recessively expressed gene," says Leta Tribble, PhD, director of education at Greenwood Genetic Center, in South Carolina. In fact, only 1 to 2 percent of people have fiery red hair plus fair, freckled skin and pale eyes -- the classic color combo is part of that genetic package. The gene could be carried invisibly through the generations, later surprising two blond or dark-haired parents.

Meanwhile, your children could have vastly different heads of hair. "You get a reshuffling of genes with each child," says Garber. Consider Lisa Shenton's two boys: "Our 4-year-old, Cole, has pale skin and bright-red hair -- just what my husband looked like at that age. Our second son, Luke, age 2, looks exactly like me: olive skin and dark eyes," says the Farmington Hills, Michigan, mom.