10 Weeks

We are so bad at keeping secrets! We told immediate family this week that we are having another baby. A few people were so excited that they actually cried, which made me cry of course. I'm extremely grateful to be blessed with two great families. They have been praying for this little baby along with us and I know that their faith, added to ours, made this miracle happen.

Our ward had Super Saturday last week. They had a holiday food cooking class. I was so sad that I was only able to sample a few things because it all looked so good! At least I didn't loose what I did eat! I think that staying healthy during pregnancy is so hard, especially for me. I wake up in the middle of the night almost every night starving to death! Of course I don't snack on an apple or carrot sticks, it's more like cupcakes, cookies, or ice cream. I'm going to be huge by the time May comes along!

Your sprout’s spurt continues this week -- finally, her weight is measurable! She’s a mere 4 grams (equivalent to just 4 paperclips!) and is the size of a pretty little strawberry. This week, her heart is strong enough for the beat to show up on a Doppler reading done by your doctor. Don’t panic if her heart sounds like it’s about to explode -- in utero, babies have a heart rate of about 140 beats per minute, compared to our 80 beats. Her brain is also moving like Greased Lightning: every minute it develops a quarter of a million new neurons. She'll be outpacing Einstein in no time at all! As if all that weren't enough, your baby's heart is now pumping blood throughout her body; if you're lucky enough to catch it, you might see the blood flow on your next ultrasound, since her skin is parchment-thin right now. With all this work going on, it's hard to believe she's still so tiny!

First Doctor's Appointment

Yesterday I had my first doctor's appointment. I had an internal ultrasound done. I've never had one of those done, and I liked it more than the embarrassing stomach one. The ultrasound was so quick, and we only got one picture. They found an umbilical cyst, but the doctor said it shouldn't be anything to worry about. They will check it again at the next ultrasound at 20 weeks. Everything else looked good and I am right on schedule. The baby is an inch long and I got to see it move around and see its heartbeat.

Our little baby!!

Week 9

The pukes have finally started. Although, I've only made a deposit in the porcelain bank 3 times, it's still 3 times too many. I'm driving Brandon crazy with my worry all the time. If I'm not feeling sick, then I get worried that something is wrong. While I was in the bathroom Xander came in and was really interested in what I was doing. He stood by me and rubbed my back and asked lots of questions. The next time, he stood by me and mimicked me and then laughed. Later he told me that I spit all my yuckies out and then flushed them away. At least I can still entertain while I'm puking my guts out!

This week your little tadpole takes a giant step up the evolutionary ladder and loses that pesky tail. Moreover, he’s a healthy 1” this week -- around the size of a green olive. One other big change has occurred: if you had an ultrasound today, chances are good that you’d see your own little Chubby Checker bopping around in there, because he’s really starting to move. His kidneys are starting to function and his spinal cord has now grown the full length of his spine. As if that weren't enough, his intestines are migrating from the umbilical cord into his growing abdominal cavity.

Week 8

I finally started to feel sick last week. However, it is nothing compared to the constant wrenching like when I was pregnant with Xander. This pregnancy is completely different. I'm still starving all the time and have to eat to feel better. With Xander, I couldn't even think about eating anything or I would loose it! I do want to barf if I even think about the carrots that we canned, I'm gagging as I type. A couple of nights in a row I have woken up in the middle of the night feeling sick. I'm still kind of worried that something is wrong, but I hope that I am being spared morning sickness this time because of all that I went through to get pregnant. Maybe I've just grown up and toughened up and am now better at being pregnant. I can't wait to go to my appointment next week! Brandon informed me yesterday that he could tell that I was pregnant in my garments. Thankfully I am rarely seen in just my garments by people outside of my household. We want to keep this pregnancy a secret as long as possible!

Last week your little tootsie was a blueberry, this week it’s back to the legume family: baby is about ¾” long, or roughly the size of a pinto bean. Luckily, that’s where the resemblance ends. Your magic bean is growing eyelid folds and the nerve cells in his retinas are beginning to form. The heart is being embellished with aortic and pulmonary valves. Fingers and toes have progressed beyond bud stage and now are formed down to the first joint, although they are still webbed. And baby finally has a funny bone − you’ll have to wait a bit to test it out, though

Week 7

I'm still not sick yet. I'm still really worried about the health of the baby and my health. When I was pregnant with Xander I lost 10 lbs. in the first trimester. If I'm not sick this time, I think I will gain more weight than I should. I started to feel some vertigo the other day.

This week, your little lentil leaps headlong into the fruit bowl, achieving coveted blueberry status. Thankfully, he or she is beginning to resemble a little person: Leg buds will appear and arm buds grow a bit longer and start to divide into segments, one for the hand and one for the arm. The baby also now has digital plates on hands and feet where fingers and toes will eventually develop. Thanks to these beginning limbs, the little guy is already moving around inside the amniotic sac which will be his home for the next eight months. Internal organ systems are also evolving at a steady pace: the baby’s teensy ticker already has its right and left chambers and the lungs have developed their primary bronchii. The pancreas is fully formed and ready to start working, as is the appendix. Last, but not least, baby’s intestines are taking shape, but instead of being located in the abdominal region, they are developing outside the body, in the umbilical cord!
Cute Alert! The wee one’s nose is starting to take shape. In no time you will be kissing it!

Week 6

Baby’s brain gets its groove on during this time – literally. The neural groove closes and early brain chambers are forming, which means his central nervous system is well on its way. Other cool changes are taking place, too: his eyes are forming, heart contractions begin and limb buds appear. Junior still doesn’t look much like you – after all, he’s only the size of a ladybug. But his core systems are heating up at a rapid pace.

I told the Stake Camp Leaders that I was expecting and probably wouldn't be able to go to camp. They were excited for me. They are going to wait a few months to make sure that nothing happens to the baby, then they are going to call another assistant. She will assist me so that she knows what is going on and then she will take my place at camp.

I'm still not sick at all and that really worries me. I might call the doctor sometime to see if I should be worrying about this.