Grain of Rice

The picture you see is from my 2nd sonogram which shows one and only one healthy developing baby. On Monday I went to my first doctor’s appointment. As the doctor started the sonogram, the first thing she asked was if we had twins in our family history. I proceeded to freak out a little…I guess she could have just been making small-talk but as it turns out she thought she saw two yolk sacs. She explained that there are a few reasons to see two sacs at this point and that we needed to get an advanced sonogram to be sure. Yesterday was the day. I had to drink two large bottles of water and not go to the bathroom. I guess a full stomach of liquid helps them at this early stage to see more. But my full bladder became very painful as they started pressing the sonogram instrument on my lower abdomen to see the baby. They did a thorough exam measuring the baby, the uterus, the amniotic fluid, the cervix, the ovaries, just about everything you can think of that is down there. We then saw our teeny, teeny, tiny grain of rice (18mm) and it’s heart pumping away. Then we heard the heart! Saxton actually recorded it onto his phone and will try to get it on here somehow for you to hear later. Just incredible…amazing…
They told us that everything is progressing right on track. We left the office just relieved to know either way if there were one or two. Because of the twins possibility, I searched and now know our family history. Twins are there…so it could’ve been a possibility! We are very grateful to have one healthy grain of rice with a beating heart in the cooker!

I am 6 weeks old and am so beginning to appear human. I’m about 6-8 mm long. Arm and legs buds are working out nicely as are the nasal pits. Here’s what else is going on: muscles, cartilage, liver, pancreas, lungs, the stomach and… are those sex organs? I believe they are. The larynx and inner ear are starting to form so pretty soon I’ll be able to hear mom and dad singing and playing the bassoon - about which I have mixed feelings. Mom is feeling some nausea and dad is changing the kitty litter though he thinks toxoplasmosis is a conspiracy.

I am one month old. I am no longer a shapeless mass of cells - which is awesome. I am a tiny tadpole-like embryo, smaller than a grain of rice. I look far from human though I do have a head equiped with a mouth opening and eye spots. My primitive heart has begun to pump about 150 beats per minute and the right and left hemispheres of my brain are developing. Do I have a tail you may ask. I do indeed have an embryonic tail though I’ll be losing that bad boy in the next couple weeks. I’m hoping for arm and leg buds soon.