Pregnancy Update - Week 12

What’s Happening This Week: The most dramatic development this week: Reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over two inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce.

This week we had our second doctor's appointment. It was a simple appointment that didn't really require much. We were in and out in about 20 minutes start to finish! I'm definitely up 4 lbs. from my pre-pregnancy weight. The coolest part was getting to hear the baby's heartbeat. The doctor put the Doppler right on my stomach and swish-swish-swish! The baby's heartbeat was immediately heard. The doctor didn't tell us what the heartbeat was, but said that it was very strong! Jarrod, who wasn't sure if he needed to come to the appointment, was so excited he was there for that!

Disclaimer - Jarrod will be at each and every doctor's appointment, if at all possible, because we both want him there. He has a flexible schedule and making it to the appointments hasn't been a problem yet. He did ask if this was an appointment he needed to go to - he just wasn't sure why I was going to the doctor. As soon as I told him it was for the baby, he was completely on board. :-) 

How far along? 12 weeks

Weight gain: 4 lbs. and holding steady. Now that I'm home and not traveling as much, it's easier to eat healthier. That doesn't mean I'm not eating junk, it just means my meals are healthier than they were on the road. ;-)

Stretch marks? Still the ones on my hips. Not too concerned about that - they've come and gone throughout weight loss and gain over the years.

Sleep: I'm sleeping better than I will be, but I'm still getting up 3-4 times a night to go to the bathroom. It's not ideal.

Food cravings: Nothing really, but I am allowing myself to eat things I haven't eaten in years - chicken tenders, lots of ice cream, etc. ;-)

Labor Signs: None.

What I miss: We did VBS this week and I helped Jarrod with the 5th graders. It tested my patience and coming home to a nice glass of wine would be awesome. I'm also really missing feeling skinny.

What I am looking forward to: Feeling the baby kick. Jarrod get excited about it as well this week. He can't wait!

Anxieties: I'm stressing right now about finding out if it's a boy or girl. I am about 60% sure I don't want to know, but flip flop often...

Weekly Wisdom: Nothing this week...

Milestone: I hit my last week of the first trimester!