16 Weeks

This week, Baby Tootle got a visit from his or her grand-
parents, my mom and dad. I'm so thankful they were able to make the long journey from Ohio for a "just for fun" visit. We had a good time just hanging out and I was again reminded how lucky Steve and I both are to have such great, fun, supportive parents. Thanks for coming, Grandma and Grandpa Lutterbein! The picture at right is me and my belly before a hot Valentine's Day double date with Steve and my parents. Below, my dad and I are comparing bellies. He's still got me beat!


In other family news, Baby Tootle's new second-cousin was born today. My sweet cousin Marla brought Oliver Craig safely into the world today. Congratulations to Marla and Brian!

Speaking of giving birth, at 16 weeks, the reality that I'll actually be doing that has been setting in. Until recently, I'd focused on sections of my pregnancy books about the development of the fetus, what foods I should be eating, etc. but had avoided the parts about birth. Now that I'm four months into this, it seemed time to start tackling those chapters.

Also, I now understand the big deal about pregnancy cravings. I've had an unstoppable craving for strawberry milkshakes lately. One day last week it was so severe that I HAD to leave work and get one in order to make it through the afternoon.

Besides forcing me to down milkshakes like there's no tomorrow, here is what baby has been working on over the past week:

Week 16
Get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, your baby will double his weight and add inches to his length. Right now, he's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.

14 weeks

On Tuesday we had our second prenatal appointment. All is healthy and properly growing. It was a treat to listen to the baby's heartbeat again, though the conversation I was having with the midwife about constipation took away from the special moment just a bit!

At our next appointment in early March, we'll have another ultrasound with the possibility of finding out the baby's gender.

Here's some exciting news about the baby's development this week:

Week 14
This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.

In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.