Fifteen Weeks

Well, this is how it's going to be, I guess. For some reason, I just CAN'T remember to update this thing, and when I do remember, it's when I can't actually log in to do so.

The big news is that I felt Swarley move earlier this week! I think it was about Wednesday or Thursday, and it was definite. I've since felt Swarls move a couple times, most notably during a movie where I indulged in some Sweet Tarts and other treats. I think Swarley liked the candy!

In other news, I am looking truly pregnant now, instead of just think around the middle. Just like with Gus, people assume I'm farther along than I actually am, but I can deal with it. I just say that I grow big babies and they nod knowingly.

My biggest hurdle right now is that my back and hips are already starting to act up. I'm sure those ailments aren't helped by my son who A) wakes up in the middle of the night and wants only me, and B) insists on sleeping on the floor. This leads to me to regularly sleep on his floor...usually for around an hour or two, but sometimes much longer. I unsurprisingly wake up with aches and pains like no other, and I KNOW I have to get it under control before I get any bigger. But, you know what? It's hard to get a non-sleeper to sleep.

Swarley's done a lot of growing since I last wrote. Most notably, he or she can make all sorts of facial expressions, suck his/her thumb, pee (hooray!?), and get fingerprinted! Here's what's going on this week:

Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs.

Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but she is forming taste buds.

....and now Gus is crying for some unknown reason, so I will keep this short and sweet!

Eleven Weeks

Sorry, Swarley! I'm being really lame about your blog.

Today is my nephew Sulley's third birthday -- I can't believe he is already three! Being at his birth was one of the biggest factors when we decided to be home birthers, and I feel so privileged to have known this little boy since the moment he was born.

I have such a strong desire today to have a little boy. We've been hoping a little more for a girl (and according to Shettle's, our chances are high for a girl), but it hit me that I'd love to see Gus with a little brother! Jacob says it's because today is Sulley's birthday and I love him, so I want a boy. Perhaps Sulley has inspired me to want to add more boys to this already boy-ridden family!

I am still feeling good. Sometimes queasy, sometimes falling asleep at 9:30, but mostly good. I am craving things that I normally like ok, but never eat much of. Some of these things include tart, not chewy candy, like Fun Dip and Smarties, as well as Lays potato chips. Things I'll normally eat if they're around, but I don't really care about them that much. I'm also NOT craving my normal stuff, like baked goods. Totally weird for me.

Here's Swarley's update:

10 weeks: Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.

He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.

If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.

11 weeks: Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long andabout the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden.

She's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

Nine Weeks

I have this habit of rounding up. If it's 7:42, it's basically 8:00. If I'm nine weeks pregnant, I might as well be in my second trimester. Following that thought process, I had a miniature heart attack thinking of all the things I have to do, like put the lid on my wrapping paper box and figure out how to keep things from rolling under the stove. You know, important things!

Anyway, because I'm NOT in my second trimester, I'm trying to focus on truly important things like eating better and exercising. The eating better is going ok...Sometimes. I'm at least not gaining weight as quickly as I did with Gus. The exercising thing needs some work. A lot of work. I think about doing yoga all the time, but I literally can't remember the last time I did. Le sigh.

I'm desperate for a whey protein shake and three cheese rollups. A trip to the store tomorrow should remedy both cravings.

In actual baby news, here's what Swarley's doing right now:

Your new resident is nearly an inch long —about the size of a grape— and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks. Her eyes are fully formed, but her eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones. Now that your baby's basic physiology is in place, she's poised for rapid weight gain.

And that'll be it for now. It's 10:15 and I'm beat! Time to go fall asleep on the couch and pretend I'm awake when Jacob tries to talk to me.

Eight Weeks

When I was younger, I always bugged my mom about the fact that she didn't make a baby book for me. Somehow my oldest brother had one (or two?), but Andrew and I got jack squat. I always said, very haughtily, "All my children will have baby books!"

Now, eight weeks into my pregnancy with Swarley, and I'm already putting in less baby book/blogging effort. I don't even have two kids in my immediate presence, and I already get why Andrew and I have no baby books to keep in our garages.

First off, I will state that we are not naming our baby Swarley. It is a nickname, just like when we called Gus "Bean" while he was still a belly baby. Swarley comes from an episode of How I Met Your Mother. I thought it was so funny that I said, "Next time we're pregnant, I want to call the belly baby Swarley." THAT TIME IS NOW!

Swarley is due 01/01/12 (by my surely accurate calculations), and we are very excited, though nervous to become parents of two. I keep saying, "I just don't know what I'm going to do with two kids." But, I'm sure I'll figure it out.

Here's a quick look at what Swarley looks like right about now: http://www.ehd.org/movies.php?mov_id=49

Swarley has a heartbeat, all his or her major features are developing, little hands and feet are beginning to explore, and more. There has been SO much development already that it would take forever to find and list, but basically, our little baby is well on his/her way to becoming the little one we will kiss in seven short months!

Lastly, I have been feeling pretty good! Almost no morning sickness (just a few "off" days and food aversions), the fatigue is wearing off, and I'm not gaining weight quite as quickly as I did with Gus. (It probably helps that I'm not baking as much as I did when I was pregnant with him!) I am really surprised at how different this pregnancy is so far, and I'm interested to see if that means anything baby girl-related. ;)

Anyway, it's time to put big brother Gus to bed! Thanks for reading; I'll do my best to update this semi-regularly, but you know how it goes.