Weeks 21-22

How your baby's growing:

At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

How your life's changing:

You may start to notice stretch marks on your abdomen as it expands to accommodate your growing baby. At least half of all pregnant women will develop stretch marks by the time they give birth. These small streaks of differently textured skin can range from pink to dark brown (depending on your skin color). Although they most commonly appear on your tummy, stretch marks may also show up on your buttocks, thighs, hips, and breasts. There's no proof that lotion helps prevent stretch marks, but keeping your skin moisturized may help with any itching.

Let see - last week we went for our level II ultrasound or scan. It was somewhat anticlimactic - the baby was sitting right under my belly button and not as visible as she normally would have been (I guess). So not the best ultrasound we've had and it stunk because we waited 5 weeks to see her! The doctor did some in an check a bunch of measurements - she had normal looking parts for what he could check - like parts of the brain - kidneys- stomach, etc. You know the good stuff! She was measuring 1 day behind now but I am sort of convinced that we didn't have the stellar ultrasound tech - since she spent the entire time complaining about where she was sitting. Can i just say - not ONE picture! What a bust!

So the good news is that everything looks ok - and we get to go back in two weeks - well that got pushed to 3 weeks - so 8/5 is the next viewing. Hopefully with pictures!!

Woo Hoo! Only other news is - that the belly is bigger. Oh and it added a bunch of stretch marks. I'm still having a lot of difficulty sleeping for anything longer than an hour at a time and then wanting to falling asleep at other weird times, oh like when I am at work. I've even resorted to adding a little caffeine back in during the day. Not much help though. Sleep study this Friday to see what the deal might be. Belly is bigger - and it just got a bunch of stretch marks - new and extra strength ones apparently. I can actually feel them through my clothes. Weird. More movement down lower now - probably because the uterus is moving up and the placenta with it so I can feel more if she is lower.

Still working on names - we now have 5 first and middle name combinations we are narrowed down to...probably not much more until we see her! I can't wait! Well I can wait but I am so darn excited about that part of the deal!