Bitsy Progress- Week 18

Week 18 of Pregnancy: Fetal Nervous System
At 18 weeks pregnant, your baby is hitting the height chart at five and a half inches long (remember, that's crown to rump) and weighs about five ounces (the weight of that boneless chicken breast you're making for dinner). And now for the skill of the week (drum roll please…): The art of the yawn has been mastered by your baby (someone's sleepy!). In fact, you might catch a glimpse of that adorable yawn if you're getting an ultrasound this month. You'll also catch a glimpse of all the fetal movement your baby's doing — twists, rolls, kicks, and punches. And would you believe your baby is finally big enough for you to start feeling those movements now (or anytime in the next few weeks). So get ready!
Something you won't see on the ultrasound, but you'll know is in working order, is your baby's nervous system, which is maturing rapidly at this time. Nerves, now covered with a substance called myelin (which speeds messages from nerve cell to nerve cell), are forming more complex connections. And those in the brain are further specializing into the ones that serve the senses of touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing. Talking about hearing, your baby's is growing more acute, making your little one more conscious of sounds that come from inside your body (which means you could both be listening to each other hiccup — a skill that your baby has by now).
Taste buds are beginning to develop and can distinguish sweet from bitter tastes. The baby will suck if its lips are stroked and it can swallow, and even get the hiccups. The retinas have become sensitive to light, so if a bright light is shined on your abdomen, baby will probably move to shield its eyes.

Ramblings of an Irritated pregnant lady

Ramblings of an irritated Pregnant lady…
Wanna know whats bad enough to piss of this pregnant lady??
First of all…. my one time ALL FAVORITE could eat everyday (and I have two when I do get them) is Burgerville’s sausage toaster biscuit with Tillamook cheese. Well they don’t open early so I cant get one on my way to work. The closest one would take me 45 minutes round trip to go get from work (and home). So I’m KINDA dealing with that, pretty well so far (I think).
HOWEVER, I woke up this morning at 2:30am not feeling very good and needing French Fries and only Burger King or McDonalds would do. I convinced myself that I would get them first thing in the morning if I just went back to sleep. SO I woke up later this morning and guess what. THEY WONT MAKE FRENCH FRIES in the morning. They only serve their hashbrown thingys until they start their lunch menu. NOT EVEN FOR PREGNANT PEOPLE will they make FRIES. GRRRRRR… SO NOW I don’t feel good, and all I want is my toaster bisucuit or French fries and I cant have either of them. UGH. I’m convinced the fast food industry is against pregnant people, or maybe it’s just me. B@stards!
Now I’ve had heartburn all day and I’m CONVINCED it’s because I didn’t get my friggin French Fries this morning.
AND TO TOP IT ALL OFF, I was walking the halls at work rubbing my tummy and realized that my belly button is shortening. I’m now convinced I’m going to have an “Outtie”. Which I never really thought about before but bugs me all the same for some reason. I just KNOW that with my friends and family when they see it this summer are going to want to poke it like it’s a magical button. Heather tried to make me feel better saying that maybe it will just be a “Flattie” and not push out. I cant decide if that’s better or not? Then it would just look like I have a huge red/purple target on my tummy.
I guess since I don’t feel good today I’m just grumbling.
The good news is we get to go out of town this weekend! I will take more belly pictures too cause I’m starting to show a little more. PLUS I'm pretty sure I've felt the baby a few times this week! WHOOHOO!
PS- You know you're pregnant when you have a craving for something for dinner, start driving there and realize you're starving and have to stop for Fries on the way but REFUSE to give up on your craving.
LOVE YA~

Bitsy Progress- Week 17

Week 17 of Pregnancy: Baby's Body Fat
How big is your baby at 17 weeks pregnant? About five inches long and more than three and a half ounces — the size of your open hand. (Open the other one too and imagine your baby cradled in both your arms right after delivery!) Body fat (baby's, that is) is beginning to form and will continue to accumulate through the end of your pregnancy. By the time your baby is born, body fat will make up about two-thirds of his or her weight (and will make all those chubby parts especially yummy). Your baby is almost certainly listening up by now. In fact, loud noises — the dog barking, the doorbell ringing — will actually startle your baby (and also get him or her used to such noises; for instance, fetuses who regularly hear a dog barking will become babies who sleep right through Fido's outbursts). Your baby's eyes (which have fortunately finished their migration to the front of his or her head) are making small side-to-side movements and can even perceive some light, though the eyelids are still sealed. And since practice makes perfect, your baby is sharpening his or her sucking and swallowing skills in preparation for that first (and second…and third) suckle at your breast or bottle. In fact, most of the survival reflexes that your baby will have at birth are being perfected in utero right now.
Around this time your baby's ears pop from his head and Baby-to-be can now sense sounds. After all, he has plenty to listen to in utero! He's accustomed to the strong beating of your heart, blood rushing through your veins, and your stomach grumbling. He can also discern sounds outside the uterus, like your voice and music. Although, according to the Mayo Clinic, whether he can distinguish the sound of your voice versus other sounds is not yet clear.
On average, most moms are feeling fetal movement by week 17. Kick, little one, kick!
And here's some proof that your baby is truly one of a kind (as if you needed any!). Within the next week or so, the pads on your baby's fingertips and toes will become adorned with completely individual swirls and creases (aka fingerprints).

Bitsy Progress- Week 16

Week 16 of Pregnancy: Baby's Hearing Develops

This little one's a looker — with a face that has both eyebrows and eyelashes — but a skinny looker since there's no baby fat yet. Baby's crown-to-rump measurement is between four and five inches, and weight is around three ounces.
Listen up: Tiny bones in your fetus's ears are in place this week, making it likely that the baby can hear your voice when you're speaking (or singing in the shower)at 16 weeks pregnant. In fact, studies have found that babies who are sung to while they're in the womb recognize the same tune when it's sung to them after they are born (so choose your baby Muzak with that in mind…). And baby's busily boning up in other ways. For one, the backbone (along with the back muscles) is stronger now — strong enough, in fact, to enable your baby to work on straightening his or her head and neck even more. Baby's crown-to-rump measurement is between four and five inches in length, and weight is hovering around three ounces.
This little one's a looker — with a face that has both eyebrows and eyelashes — but a skinny looker since there's no baby fat yet. And here's the skinny on baby skin: It's practically translucent now, so if you took a peek inside your uterus, you'd be able to see your baby's blood vessels under that thin skin.
If you're having a girl, millions of eggs are forming in her ovaries right now -- your future grandchildren! And how adorable is this: Your baby may have started to get the hiccups every now and then! They're common at this stage and completely harmless. Though you probably won't feel them now, you will soon.

HELLO? Are you in there?

If it weren’t for the constant headaches and having to pee every time I drink ANYTHING I would think I wasn’t pregnant. So much so that I’m getting paranoid and I’m going to have to buy one of those at home heart monitors so I can hear the heartbeat whenever I want. I actually just went online and purchased one, should be here by Thursday. L.O.L.

I think this is the first time in my life I’ve ever been EXCITED to go to the doctor. Like SERIOUSLY counting down the hours & minutes. I cant wait to get there to hear my little Bitsy’s heartbeat! It’s the most amazing thing to think about, plus it just gives me reassurance that the baby is doing ok in there.

I haven’t felt any serious movement yet, although I’m pretty sure last night when I went to sleep I could feel Bitsy pushing on my side. It didn’t feel like cramping or like my muscles stretching like the last couple weeks changes have brought. But it’s still pretty early, so they say the movement will be few and far between and I probably wont feel much for a couple more weeks depending on my sensitivity.

I had a GREAT talk with one of our good friends Jill this weekend and she was able to reassure me on a lot of pregnancy/delivery/child rearing things. I’m SO blessed to have good friends and family girlfriends that have gone through this before and I can call at the drop of a hat (or keep all my questions until I see them and just bombard them with em).

It’s time for another belly picture! This is the original at week 5, and this is the end of week 14.

Bitsy Progress- Week 15

Week 15 of Pregnancy: Baby Kicking and Curling
Curious why your body is finally looking like it's pregnant? That's because your baby is growing bigger each week — he or she is as long as four and a half inches right now. Need a better visual (and a snack)? Hold a large navel orange in your hand — that's how big your little darlin' is at 15 weeks pregnant. (Now that you're done looking, peel that orange and eat it for a delicious two servings of vitamin C!). So what keeps your baby busy all day? Mostly, your fetus is in rehearsals — practice, practice, practicing, and getting ready for that big debut. Babies practice breathing, sucking, and swallowing so that when they leave your comfy womb and move into your comfy house, they'll have the skills necessary to survive. Fetal body movements continue to get practice this week, too. But because your baby weighs so little (a bit over two ounces), you won't feel the calisthenics going on inside your abdominal gym. But don't let that fool you. Your fetus is holding daily aerobics classes — kicking, curling toes, and moving those little arms and legs.
And with each passing week, your fetus is looking more and more like the baby you're picturing in your dreams. By now, the ears are positioned properly on the sides of the head (they used to be in the neck) and the eyes are moving from the side of the head to the front of the face — where they'll soon meet your loving gaze.