Week 20

Halfway There!

I can't believe I'm 20 weeks already! The baby moves all the time now! On Sunday he/she was going crazy. I pushed down on my belly and he/she pushed back! It was so strong Joel could feel it with his hand on my belly! It was so amazing... our first interactions with our baby! My mom (and every other mom out there) described to me how it would feel, some said "butterflies" some said "waves" but nobody can really tell you how it feels. Until you get to experience it yourself words fall short in trying to describe that feeling. It's simply wonderful! 

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Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.)

He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in his bowels, and you'll see it in his first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).

Week 18

Whoa Belly!

We went in for our 17 week check-up and got to see the baby again. He/she was moving constantly and we couldn't get over how big he/she had gotten! Unfortunately, the baby was sitting breech with his/her legs crossed and we couldn't see any goodies! We couldn't believe how much kicking and punching was going on inside my belly...and although I have felt movement, I couldn't feel any of what was going on on the screen. It's nuts!

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Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.