10 weeks

The baby is as big as a.....kumquat! How exciting!


That reference doesn't really do much for me...the description says that the baby is one inch long from head to booty - now that I understand. But I've looked up pictures of kumquats and they look bigger than that!

(Is is just me or does that thing look bigger than an inch? What are they measuring with anyway? Is that centimeters?) I've decided that I prefer Gnightgirl's guess that it would be a walnut this week...maybe we'll stick with that. Although, kumquat is fun to say!




How your baby's growing: Your baby is no longer an embryo! Though she's barely the size of a kumquat — just an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, she now has completed the most critical portion of her development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in her body rapidly grow and mature. Her vital organs — the liver, kidney, intestines, brain, and lungs — are now in place and starting to function (although they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy). Her liver continues to make blood cells, and the yolk sac, which previously supplied these cells, is no longer needed and begins to disappear. During the next three weeks, your baby's length will more than double to nearly 3 inches. Her head is proportionately smaller now than it was a few weeks ago, but it's still almost half the length of her entire body. Her forehead temporarily bulges with her developing brain and sits high on her head; it will later recede to give her a more human appearance. Each day, more minute details — including tiny fingernails, toenails, and peach-fuzz hair — start to appear on her body. Her fingers are now completely separated; her arms bend at the elbow and curve slightly; her hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over her heart; her legs are lengthening; and her feet may be long enough to meet in front of her body. She is busily swallowing amniotic fluid and kicking her legs. If you could take a peek at your baby this week, you'd be able to clearly see the outline of her spine through her parchment-thin skin. Spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from her spinal cord.

9 weeks (and counting)

How your baby's growing: Your baby is nearly an inch long — barely the size of a grape — and weighs just a fraction of an ounce, but he's poised for rapid weight gain now that his basic physical structure is in place. He's also starting to look more and more human. His embryonic "tail" is now completely gone and his body parts — including organs, muscles, and nerves — are kicking into gear.

His eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. He has earlobes, and by week's end, the inner workings of his ears will be complete. His upper lip is fully formed, too, and his mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The tips of his fingers are slightly enlarged where his touch pads are developing. All major joints — his shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees, and ankles — are working, enabling your baby to move his limbs. As for his heart, it has divided into four chambers now, and the valves have started to develop. External sex organs are there, but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks.

Soooo...it's a grape now! Yay! Wonder what food item it will be on Friday? (10 weeks) I'll be sure to let you know! And the upper lip is fully formed which leads me straight to the conclusion that it probably has a cleft palate and cleft lip. I'm trying to prepare for the worst here (while hoping for the best). Cleft palate/cleft lip is nothing compared to the things that could be wrong with the baby. I now totally understand the answer to the question: "Do you want a boy or a girl."

I don't care. As long as it's healthy.

Food issues...

I've had several tips about curbing my nausea. The most popular one seems to be:

before you even lift your head off the pillow - eat some saltines...


Since I never expected to get sick, this "morning" sickness thing really caught me off guard. I really thought that since I'm a food pig - none of that sickness would happen. I'd just eat like a horse like I always do. I mean, I'm constantly thinking about my next meal. "What's next to eat??"

Anyway, I'm usually pretty unprepared for most things that happen in my life so I don't have any saltines in the house. We don't eat crackers really so we don't own them. Sooo...I thought I was doing good to get up and eat a Go Tart (a new fangled Pop Tart that you don't toast - I loved 'em!). I found out quickly that those things weren't going to cut it. At all.

I switched to Kashi granola bars. They're really good for you. I will be honest and say that they are not the most delicious thing I've ever eaten but - right now - when smells and sights of certain foods are making me sick, a bland granola bar is my best friend. They have verrrry little sugar (again, the taste reflects this), they are not made with preservatives and "bad things" like that, and they have a good amount of protein and fiber which I need more of in my diet. I eat two of them every morning (and whenever I need a late night/middle of the night snack). They've saved my life!!

Foods I hate:

• Ham (I never DID really like it - I hate it actually. But just the sight of seeing my coworker eating it made immediately ill.)
  
• Anything with ham in it
• Turkey bacon (Mike made a split pea soup with Turkey bacon - it turns out - I hate that type of bacon.)
  
• Breakfast sandwiches and hash browns (I though these were the cure all for a while - now the thought of them makes me gag.)
• Go Tarts
  
• Almost anything I've eaten recently and don't want to eat again with the exception of a Jack's Mexican pizza which I ate two nights in a row. I actually went to the store and bought another one for dinner again the next night.
• Clear soda (another overdose victim of mine).
  

Foods I bought at the store and
have yet to use and maybe never will:

• V8 juice (low sodium)
  
• Sparkling pear juice
• Ginger Ale
• Ginger soda
• Root beer
• Goldfish crackers
• Unsalted saltines
• Pretzels
• Various soups that don't appeal to me anymore
• 50,000 breakfast sandwich items which I made Hubband move to the fridge in the garage because I can't stand to look at them - I just gagged thinking about them.
  
• Almost anything that's in the house - I usually crave food items that are not at home. (When used here, the word "crave" means anything that I think I might be able to stomach and absolutely nothing else will do.)
  

8 weeks...

Sooo...one of the first things I did was try to look up a due date. (Near the end of July by most calculations.) Boy, was I surprised to see that I'm farther along than I thought...the way "THEY" calculate it anyway. They go from the first day of your last period - women usually ovulate about two weeks after that and aren't supposed to be able to get pregnant except during that very limited time...

Anyway - so I'm about two weeks farther along than I originally would have thought. But - what do I know??? And if they want me to jump two weeks ahead - I'm already ready all over that.

The website sends me updates as to the baby's development and I have to say, they really blow my mind!

8 weeks

How your baby's growing: Your baby is now 5/8 of an inch long, about the size of a kidney bean. She's constantly moving and shifting, although you won't be able to feel these womb wiggles for several weeks yet. Her embryonic tail is disappearing, and her eyelids practically cover her eyes. Still slightly webbed, her fingers and toes are growing longer. Her arms have lengthened, too, and her hands are now flexed at the wrist and meet over her heart. Her knee joints have formed, and her feet may be long enough to meet in front of her body. With her trunk straightening out, her head is more erect. Breathing tubes extend from her throat to the branches of her developing lungs. The nerve cells in her brain are also branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. Though you may be daydreaming about your baby as one gender or another, the external genitals still haven't developed enough to reveal whether you're having a boy or a girl.

It

I was talking with a co-worker yesterday and referring to the baby as "IT".

"It's not an IT! It's a real person!" etc., etc.... "Let's call it "shim"! (Actually, I think that is kinda cute, I guess...)

"No! It's an IT. Until we know what IT is! It's either IT or baby Wofford. Or maybe $hit." (I've always like that. He - She - It - Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!)

"And, anyway - IT applies to people too." I say. Without anything to back that up.

So I go to my trusty Merriam-Webster online and look IT up. Here IT is in relevant part:

• a person or animal whose sex is unknown

That's IT!

For now.

Shock

I've been blown away by the reactions I've gotten to my little announcement. (Thanks, everybody!) I'm really touched! And everyone has been so excited and positive. I've had cryers...I even had a jumper!

But, I have not been more shocked by any one reaction than by my own. I think I'm still kind of in shock. This IS what I wanted (right?) - no turning back now that's for sure. And, maybe it's my way of protecting myself (because you never know what will happen with these things - will it "stick"?, etc.) but I feel more like there's a virus growing in me than a real, live baby. I feel nauseous. And gassy and crappy (uh, literally).

I'm an expert at "masonry". So, I think that's why I don't let myself dream about the future. I won't let myself envision holding a baby at the end of this...

And I can't imagine the responsibility...

I HAVE known for a long time that this is what I wanted to do. With this person. I can't fathom going through this without him here to help me. And I'm really not afraid of how our life will be - whatever happens.

I just wish this nausea would stop!!!!

Two Lines Two Times

Soooooo....some big changes for us Catpeople...a little baby kitty - I mean, baby (a real, human baby) is on the way.

Today, I told (almost) everyone at work. I'd been a little hesitant to post anything about it here until everyone knew but, it's been the ONLY THING ON MY MIND!!

And I'm still in shock!


Before:


After:


(I hope it doesn't gross some of you out to see my pee sticks - but I'm sure it won't be the grossest thing to be posted on here before this whole thing is over.)