Citrus-sy

They're baaa-aaaack.

The fruits, that is. Baby Woof is a lemon now. I can hardly wait to see what it will be the end of this week. But, I really, really can't wait to know what it is. I don't want to wait any longer to buy stuff. I haven't bought one single, solitary thing yet. That is insane for a consumer like me. And, it'll be just my luck that the day of the sonogram (which has yet to be determined) - the baby will have its legs crossed or have its "naughty bits" facing my spine or something.

14 weeks

How your baby's growing: Head to bottom, your baby's 3 1/2 inches long — about the length of a lemon — and weighs about 1 1/2 ounces. Her body's growing faster than her head, which now sits upon a more well-defined neck. By the end of this week, her arms will have lengthened and will be in proportion to the rest of her body. (Her legs still have some growing to do, though.) She's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair all over her body (called lanugo). Her liver starts secreting bile this week, a sign that it's already functioning properly, and her spleen starts contributing to the production of red blood cells. She's also producing and discharging urine into the amniotic fluid, a normal process that she'll keep up until birth. You still can't feel your baby's movements, but her hands and feet (which are now half an inch long) are more flexible and active. Thanks to brain impulses, her little facial muscles are getting a workout as she squints, frowns, and grimaces. She can grasp now, too, and she may be able to suck her thumb.

13 weeks

The food references haven't stopped yet! But, surprisingly, this time the baby is not a type of fruit...and, no, it's not a pack of smokes...it's a jumbo shrimp this week. This is the first picture I found that had an item placed next to the shrimp as a size reference. I thought it was pretty ironic so I just had to post it. It actually does help me get an idea of the size!

13 weeks

How your baby's growing: Your belly may soon be big enough to announce to the world that you're expecting, but your baby is still tiny. In fact, he's only about 3 inches long crown to rump — roughly the size of a jumbo shrimp — and weighs just about an ounce. Despite the small proportions, there's a fully formed baby inside your womb now. Much more proportional than it was a few weeks ago, his head is now only about a third the size of his body. His tiny, unique fingerprints are already in place. His kidneys and urinary tract are functional, and he's starting to urinate out the amniotic fluid he's been swallowing. As you start your second trimester, most of your baby's critical development will be completed, and your odds of miscarriage will drop considerably.

Lime a dozen...

Wow. Do you think this fruit comparison thingy will ever stop? Will it be the size of a watermelon someday? Basketball?? Guess I'll have to wait and see!

Oh, and I can't tell you how relieved I am to know that the baby's eyes have moved from the side of its head to the front. That sounds like a real plus!

12 weeks

How your baby's growing: Your baby's hit the 2-inch mark (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce. Her face is beginning to look more human. Her eyes, which started out on the sides of her head, have moved closer together on her face, and her ears are near their final positions on the sides of her head. Your baby's intestines, which have grown so rapidly that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into her abdominal cavity about now. Her kidneys are secreting urine into her bladder. Her nerve cells have been multiplying rapidly, and synapses (neurological pathways in the brain) are forming. Your baby may have acquired more reflexes by now, including sucking, and she'll even squirm if you prod your abdomen, though you still won't be able to feel her movement for several weeks.

"Doctor" visit

I went for my first visit yesterday. I still haven't met my doctor yet (didn't even officially have one until yesterday) because I am a loser of a woman. I have not been to have an "annual" since I moved to this area like three annuals ago. That's right - remember - I said I'm a loser. And I know how important it all is - I have no excuses really.

So, I saw the nurse practitioner and we picked a doctor that will be available in July when baby Woof is due. I hear really good things about him and I think I'm going to like him. Yes! It's a him! I never thought I'd want my OB/Gyn to be a man - but I've matured I guess. In one visit and one "delicate condition" I've already decided that I know what they mean when they say you lose all sense of modesty. Who cares how they see me?? And who they are?? It's their job. And they've seen it all...

The only news from the visit was that we got to hear the heartbeat! It was exciting! I didn't know how I'd feel. But I definitely felt emotional and I kinda wanted to cry. Although, I couldn't really move or the lady would lose the sound. I laughed at one time and there was a bunch of loud static blocking the heartbeat. The baby's heartbeat was 162 miles an hour. (Or beats per minute, I guess. It's just more fun to say miles an hour!)

It seems a little more real now. There is something in there besides a virus after all!! I was half thinking that there wasn't anything in there and I told the nurse as much. She laughed and said that she thought that too when she had her kids. Until she worked at the clinic she didn't realize how accurate the home pregnancy tests were. Not that I don't believe them - they're like 99.99999999% accurate but that is the only test I've taken so far. No blood test to confirm it. This was my first doctor's visit after all. It makes you kind of wonder if you're making all this up and just getting fat and being crazy...

But there WAS a little swishy heartbeat saying that something's going on in there...something's happening! I can't wait to hear/see more!

This little figgy...

At 11 weeks, baby Woof is now fig-sized. I don't see too much progress but getting these weekly e-mails helps. And, of course, there's the 10 lbs. I've already gained. Not that I'm worried about that - I just hear that they can get kinda nasty at the doctor's office...I don't wanna hear it!

I had my first visit on Friday. It was a paperwork/orientation visit entitled "Great Expectations" [insert knee slapping laughter here]. It was a fairly uneventful visit. Four couples, some pamphlets, some paperwork, drink the extra sugary orange soda to check your blood glucose, wait an hour (filling out paperwork and such takes up the hour), go down to get your first set of labs...pretty inane stuff - but also kind of exciting. Something's happening! We're making progress!

So....six tubes of blood later (taken from two different arms because one just stopped working) we're heading out to our respective vehicles in the parking lot. Mike is concerned that I haven't eaten in a while and I'm calling my friend Amy at work to set up our lunch.

The usual chorus of: "Where do you want to go? I don't care, where do YOU want to go?"

"Blech!"

"Bless you! I hope that was a sneeze." Amy says.

It wasn't. It was a "real puke" I tell her. The rest of the orange soda escaped. (Thank goodness! I felt better instantly.) And there was nothing to do but laugh and laugh at the crazy-rudeness of my puking while I was talking to someone on the phone. Oh, and Mike wondered what I was going to do the mess in the parking garage.

Uh, leave it. "Remember that dead mouse we saw on the ground on the way in??"

11 weeks

How your baby's growing: Your fig-sized baby is now fully formed — measuring 1 1/2 inches long and weighing in at a quarter of an ounce. His skin is still transparent, allowing many of his blood vessels to show through. Some of his bones are beginning to harden, and tiny toothbuds are starting to appear under his gums. His fingers and toes have separated, and he may soon be able to open and close his fists. He's already busy kicking and stretching, and his tiny movements are so fluid they look like water ballet. These movements will increase as his body grows and becomes more developed and functional. As his diaphragm develops, your tiny tenant may also start to get the hiccups. Because he's still so small, though, you won't feel any of his workouts or intrauterine gulps until sometime between weeks 16 and 20.