14 Weeks

14 weeks

How Your Baby’s Growing (from Babycenter.com):

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.

How far along: 14 weeks

Pregnancy symptoms: nausea, tiredness, headaches

Food Cravings: French fries and milkshakes, fruit, baked potato soup

Food Aversions: eggs, most meat, anything I have to smell cooking

Sleep: The hubs is still on the couch and I’m still sleeping very well.  I often go several hours without waking.  It is joyous.

Measurement:  about 40.25 inches around

Movement: just tiny flutterings from time to time

Labor signs: It is probably nothing, but I do almost feel like I’m having Braxton Hicks from time to time.  That is most likely ridiculous and not the case, but still…

What I miss: not being averse to cooking or the smell of food.

What I’m looking forward to: Even though it’s roughly 6 weeks away, I am looking forward to the next ultrasound.  :)  I’m also looking forward to really being able to feel them move.

Milestone: Well, I’m in the second trimester!  I’ve felt nauseous on and off today, but let me highlight the important part of that statement: OFF.  The last week I have felt better, not great, but better than before.  I am not nauseous all the time.  I have thrown up much much less.  I was hoping for the nausea to just turn off completely, but I’ll take off sometimes.  :)

Thoughts from the children: James points to my belly and says “There are two babies in there.”  And he tells me they are sisters.

Doctor’s visit: In two weeks!

Other thoughts: I’m probably not actually more tired, but I have felt more tired the past several days.  And I’ve been battling daily headaches (boo!).  Fortunately only one deserved migraine status, and thankfully not a bad one.  But still – yuck!

Baby-related projects:

• I have a big…well… mediumish furniture rearranging in the plans for this summer.  We may very likely switch the girls from their trundle bed to the low loft/bunk from Ikea.  It’s pretty inexpensive, and it looks like it would work well for our space.  Either way, we’re going to move James in with the girls in his toddler bed.  We’ll move the girls’ play kitchen out to the living room where the changing table is now.  The changing table will go into James’ old room, which will be the nursery.  We’ll do some finagling of the little furniture in there to get another crib in as well.  My plan is for this to take place in June.  I think it will be a good idea for the kids to get readjusted to sleeping in the same room over the summer.  And I’m hoping I’ll feellike doing this in June.  :)