13 weeks

This baby sure look like a BABY!!



Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.

As for me...

This is the last week of your first trimester, and your risk of miscarriage is now much lower than earlier in pregnancy. Next week marks the beginning of your second trimester, a time of relative comfort for many women who see early pregnancy symptoms such as morning sickness and fatigue subside. More good news: Many couples also notice a distinct libido lift around this time. Birth is still months away, but your breasts may have already started making colostrum, the nutrient-rich fluid that feeds your baby for the first few days after birth, before your milk starts to flow.

12 weeks

I gained a week, remember?? So this is catch-up time!!

The most dramatic development this week: reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. ***In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it.*** This is what happened when my OB did the ultrasound to check the heartbeat! She just jostled my stomach a little and it woke up and started moving!! Amazing!! But, of course, I couldn't feel it

His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder.

Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in your baby's brain, synapses are forming furiously. His face looks unquestionably human: His eyes have moved from the sides to the front of his head, and his ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over 2 inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce.

11 weeks

Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden.

She's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

Big pregnancy update!

I had my second OB appointment today and was the first one in the door after lunch so I was the first one back and the first one seen. Woo-hoo!! I really do like my doctor and she answered all my questions so I'm happy about that.
Here's the deal:

1. I actually lost half a pound according to them but she's not concerned. I didn't gain in the first trimester with Andrew, either, but certainly caught up later (I gained almost 30 lbs. with Andrew). Now that I feel better, I'm sure I'll be making up for lost time!

2. We looked at my fertility chart and she has my due date officially at May 6, a week earlier than I had determined. I bet I'll end up closer to the 13th, anyway, but we'll see. So I gained a week!! You'll notice my ticker, weeks progress and days left have all been updated. I like being farther along rather than less!!

3. She is scheduling my ultrasound for 19 weeks, when my grandmother is here visiting from Florida so she can come to the ultrasound with me! Woo-hoo!! It'll be Dec. 22 so I'm super-excited to know that all is well with the baby and hopefully to find out the gender!! What a great Christmas gift!!

4. She said my uterus is measuring larger than usual for this point, but evidently my pelvis is tilted...?? So it's normal. She did feel my uterus up under my belly button, which explains why I feel so huge!!

5. All my blood, urine and Pap results came back normal. YAH! She said there was a slightly elevated thyroid reading that's normal in the first trimester that they'll re-test when they do the diabetes screening later.

6. The BIG news! She couldn't find the heartbeat with the Doppler, no matter how low she went. NO, I wasn't worried or freaked out! She thought the baby was sleeping and sitting very low, so we moved into the ultrasound room. There, she powered that sucker up and my uterus and the baby popped up immediately! I could make out the head and body right away. It was so still--it really was sleeping!!

***THIS is exactly what it looked like! It's a Google image I borrowed but I wanted a visual. Laying in this position, head to the right. Same head shape I remember, too!!***



So she jostled me around a little and sure enough, it started wiggling around and moving its head!! I'm pretty sure I could make out its eye sockets! It was my first ultrasound and totally amazing. It looked just like the Babystrology picture in the sidebar!

She did see the heartbeat and we watched it move for a moment. Since I'd just emptied my bladder, there wasn't much to see but she said everything looked great!!

My next appointment is for the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, then the ultrasound is the Monday before Christmas!

Having miscarried just 6 months ago, I can honestly say that this pregnancy had a very surreal quality to it up until today and having seen our baby was so reassuring and made me feel so good, to connect with that little person in there! I hadn't realized how much I was sort of "holding my breath" to make sure everything was OK before getting excited about this baby. Now I can look forward to the next milestones and the holidays approaching, knowing there's a bona fide baby growing in there and it's not just gas! :)

I am so grateful for all of you who have been praying and asking about the pregnancy. I feel so blessed that this baby is healthy and well--and Mama, too!!

In other news, some of you may not know that at my annual exam, my doc found a spot on one of my breasts. I had a sonogram done and it was nothing, BUT they found a different spot. That spot is probably nothing but because of my family history, they wanted to be sure.

I'm seeing a highly recommended surgeon on Thursday who is going to give me a second opinion and advise me on what to do and whether a biopsy is required. The other issue is that Andrew isn't completely weaned yet, and they can't do a biopsy until he is. So pray for wisdom for the doctor (Dr. Donoghue) and that we can continue (and bring to an END) the weaning process quickly, and with as little drama (and trauma!) as possible.

Will keep you posted!!

Thanks again for your prayers! Thank you, Lord!!

FINALLY!!

That stinkin' percentage meter is past 20%! NOW I feel like I'm getting somewhere!! :)

I have continued to feel better since this past weekend, nausea-wise. Still have some aversions, not many cravings, and still get tired easily and have low energy. But I am not complaining because #1, it could be a lot worse and #2, this baby is hanging on and I am so grateful!!

10 weeks

OUR BABY HAS BEEN UPGRADED TO A FETUS!! SO much development has taken place that it's no longer an embryo but a full-blown BABY! I'm so excited!! Now, this baby just has to grow, grow, GROW!

In Mommy News, I am finally feeling more human! Still fatigued but the nausea is WAY less and I'm eating and functioning more like my normal self. Just this past weekend, it started letting up and now I've been about 90% nausea-free for about five days!

Here's me this past Sunday after church, sporting a teeny lil' baby bump that's pretty much all fat and gas. At least my fat is round!



My clothes still fit cuz I was big to begin with--but I definitely prefer loose! I don't really have maternity pants, anyway, and it hasn't truly cooled off yet so I'm good so far. I'd love an excuse to shop, though! "But nothing fits, Honey!! You want me to wear pants, don't you??"

I have my second OB appointment on Tuesday which is exciting because there's a chance we'll get to hear a heartbeat and I have a ton of questions for her...but then again, if I don't get to hear the heartbeat, I'll be super-disappointed. This pregnancy still has a definite surreal quality to it that would be helped a lot by knowing there's a baby living inside me!!

Here's some fun images of 10-week old fetuses.

This is a model like my mom shows pregnant moms at the crisis pregnancy center where she volunteers. The mother-to-be gets to hold this model and see how well-formed a baby is at just 10 weeks.



This one is cool, too.



Here's the official one for this week.



And here's the info. for this week:

Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.

He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.

If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.

9 weeks

This should clue you in. I can't remember what my cell phone charger looks like. There's several plugged in all over the house and none of them seem to fit and when I try to picture what I'm even looking for...I can't remember!!! Gray? Black??

And now my phone is near-dead. Grrrr. Good ol' pregger brain.

As for morning sickness? All day, every day. I have moments of feeling normal but about 90% of the time, I'm queasy, exhausted or both. Various combinations, of course, but always there. I'm not getting out much--just muscling Andrew in and out of the car is a chore. And I just don't feel like doing anything. But sleep.

Today I went to a lab to get blood drawn for my pre-natal work-up. My next appointment is still almost two weeks away but I'm glad it's done. My arm still hurts
where she took the blood--there was a lot of needle wiggling. Ugh.

So week 9! Three weeks to the end of the first trimester!! Woo-hoo!!

Hooooeeee, that's one funny-looking baby!!



Here's another version:



Here ya go:

Your new resident is nearly an inch long — about the size of a grape — and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months.

Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks.

Her eyes are fully formed, but her eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct.

The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones. Now that your baby's basic physiology is in place, she's poised for rapid weight gain.

Nursery Dreamin'

Don't even get me started on whether we'll actually have a dedicated nursery for the new baby, use a crib, etc. etc.

That is a post for another day. But even if the baby just has a corner of our room, you bet I'll make it cute!!

Of course, it's hard to "shop" without knowing the gender but, well, the girl stuff is just a lot cuter.

So in the meantime, it's fun to see the new nursery decor out there. More sophisticated than even four years ago. It soothes my stomach somehow :)

This is from Pottery Barn and it's called "Brooke." I love the combo of blue, green and pink.



Here's a close-up up the bedding. See the bird??



Look at the precious sheets and bumper pad!



I could accessorize with anything out-doorsy and whimsical (birds, trees...) and you know I love owls!!



Fun, huh??

8 weeks

How am I feeling, you ask? Like I'm "coming down with something." Just this annoying combination of nausea and fatigue that's lingering about 75% of the time. The other 25% of the time is a relief to feel "normal." I'm looking...thicker...these days, too. And probably a little green, too!! I have a love-hate relationship with food, too. A meal can be totally yummy but I still have to kind of suffer through it, yet I crave stuff that doesn't taste that good. Weird.

I'm so excited to have 2/10(ish) months behind me!! I'm 1/5 done!!

New this week:



About as big as a kidney bean!

Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from your baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. You may be daydreaming about your baby as one sex or the other, but the external genitals still haven't developed enough to reveal whether you're having a boy or a girl. Either way, your baby — about the size of a kidney bean — is constantly moving and shifting, though you still can't feel it.