The baby is now the size of a lemon, about 3.5 inches long and weighs about 1.5 ounces. A fuzzy layer of fine hair, called lanugo, is beginning to coat her entire body. Internally, the liver is starting to secrete bile and the spleen is helping produce red blood cells. As the brain continues to mature, she can make different facial expressions and may even react when someone gives my belly a little poke.
Sunday, December 12, 2010 ~ Tuesday we had our second ultrasound. The baby looks like a baby even though the head is still disproportionately large. The body and arms will grow more proportional to the head this week but it will be a few weeks before the legs get there. We saw and heard the baby's heartbeat and saw her moving her little mouth quite a bit. It was absolutely amazing! The tech said she could check for gender without a ton of accuracy but we still don't want to find out.
Wednesday I mailed out the Christmas cards announcing the baby and Thursday I got lots of fun texts and emails. I also told work this week. I walked into the principal's office and my department chair's classroom and told them I wanted to show them a really cool picture, then showed them a picture from the ultrasound. I wasn't sure when I was going to tell my students until one of my coworkers told me that some of my students have been suspicious for a while. I decided to wear my "I'm so crafty, I make people" t-shirt on Thursday. It was a lot of fun telling people and I'm so relieved that I don't have to hide my belly anymore. Although apparently I wasn't doing a good job of it - in each class period 5-6 students said they were suspicious that I was pregnant!
I think I have definitely "popped" over the last few days. I'm nervous to try on work pants tomorrow. I have been wearing a few pairs of "fat pants" over the last several weeks and they fit just fine. For the last 3-4 days, since I've popped, I've been wearing maternity pants so who knows if my fat pants will fit anymore.
Also, over the last three days I think I've felt the baby move a few times. Everything I read says I won't be able to feel the baby until 15 weeks but I've been feeling things that I've never felt before. Friday morning was a very distinct rumble and today I felt several flutters in the same spot over a couple minutes.
Tuesday is my monthly doctor appointment. I think it will be uneventful: pee, weight, and hear the heartbeat. Of course, hearing the heartbeat never gets old. In fact, we recorded video of the ultrasound with my new iPhone and I've watched it over and over. Should be a pretty uneventful few months. I should definitively feel the baby soon and for the remainder of the pregnancy. A few weeks after that, Dan should be able to feel kicks from the outside. We will have another ultrasound between 18 and 20 weeks for a full anatomy check and I will continue with regular monthly doctor appointments. I read that I should have my energy back at the beginning of the second trimester, which was a week ago. Hasn't happened quite yet. My bedtime is still around 9:30 pm and I'm pretty wiped out from the early afternoon for the rest of the day.
Next week, when I'm off work, I'll post more pictures and see if I can post the video of the ultrasound.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010 ~ Uneventful appointment, as expected. I've only gained a pound in the four weeks since I last saw the doctor. I know the weight gain will pick up but am glad to have it under control despite still not really working out. Since I keep reading that I should get my energy back anytime now, I don't see the point in pushing myself when I'm exhausted. However if I don't get my energy back soon, I think I'll get back to exercise and just do the best I can.
I have the last blood draw for the chromosomal screening coming up sometime in the next two weeks (I'll probably do it next week when I'm off of work), an ultrasound in three weeks, and my monthly doctor appt in four weeks. The doctor said the next ultrasound is the fun one; they examine the baby from head to toe!
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