14 Weeks

First week of our second trimester! Things seem to be really moving along - but that feeling results from my awesome visit to the doctor today! We heard the baby's heartbeat!! It was cool, I've heard the sound before, but not when it was live, and MY BABY!!! Wow...I couldn't help but smile and giggle!

I am feeling more energetic, especially in the mornings, which is good to start my day. There is a lot more noticable pulling feelings coming from my pelvic/lower stomach area, so I am getting used to that. Dr. Cone told us today that I may already be able to feel the baby move, but probably mistake it for gas. LOL And that you can really start to feel in between 16 and 18 weeks. So this next month should be really exciting...

Our next appointment will be at 18 weeks (plus a few days) on Wednesday, June 16th. That day I will get the ultrasound that takes all the baby's measurements and tells us what the sex is. That will be a REALLY exciting day!! My mom will be with us that day which will make it even more special.

I was so happy to get the news that we can find out the sex and get the 'mega' ultrasound with CD in just a month!! One more month!! I thought I would have to wait at least 6 to 8 more weeks so I was pleasantly surprised to say the least. They actually prefer to determine the gender and take measurements at 18 weeks because the baby isn't too big and crowded in the uterus just yet. There is more room to manuever and they can get more accurate results.

From the website:
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.