12 Weeks

Yesterday I hit the 12 week mark.   The 'safe' zone.  I should be able to let out a big sigh of relief in knowing that our baby will probably be carried to term and there won't be complications..... This is normally when skeptical parents begin announcing that they are expecting.  

Today is the first day in a very long time that I haven't thrown up while I have been at home - at least not yet.   I won't get too excited that I am over it.  I am more realistic than that!   I am hoping that it is my glimmer of hope that over the next few weeks I will be getting sick less and less often.    

I am not sure that my 'sparkle' is here yet.  I don't think so.  Is my physical sickness affecting my emotions?  Or is my emotions affecting me physically?  I wish I knew so I could start working on it........

In the mean time - here is a quick little summary of where we are at in baby development right now.   I also read in one of my baby books that the intestines are starting to migrate through the umbilical cord to the abdomen of the little Intruder.  What an amazing thing to help create a child;  guided by the hand of God.. 

You are 12 weeks pregnant. (fetal age 10 weeks)

• The fetus is now about 2.5 inches (6cm) length and weighs about 0.7 ounce (20 g).
• The feet are almost half an inch (1cm) long.
• The fetus starts moving spontaneously.
• The face is beginning to look like a baby's face.
• The pancreas is functioning and producing insulin.
• Fingernails and toenails appear.
• The baby can suck his thumb, and get hiccups.

From this week you may well be able to hear the baby's heart beat through a doppler monitor on your tummy. You will notice that the rate is up to 160 a minute, double that of a normal adult.

Your baby now has a chin and a nose and a facial profile. Vocal chords are complete, and the baby can and does sometimes cry silently. The brain is fully formed, and the baby can also feel pain. The fetus may even suck his thumb. The eyelids now cover the eyes, and will remain shut until the seventh month to protect the delicate optical nerve fibers. The hair is on the head and the fingers and toes have developed soft nails. The kidneys are developed and begin to secrete urine.

Your baby weighs between 0.5 and 0.7 ounce (14 to 20g), and crown-to-rump length is almost 2.5 inches (63mm). Your baby's size has almost doubled in the past 3 weeks.