Grain of Rice

So it appears it’s time for Elizabeth to get a new bathing suit.

As you can clearly see in the photo, it’s a boy.

Elizabeth and I had an appointment this week where we were again able to hear and see the baby. You can listen to the heartbeat here. We saw the outstretched legs and the baby’s profile and face. It was moving a lot so our doctor wasn’t able to get a clear view to determine the sex. In about a month, at the next appointment she will do an extensive sonogram to measure everything and will probably be able to be sure about the sex. I don’t think either of us has a preference at this point though Elizabeth had her first baby dream this week and it was a boy. One of the secretaries at the conservatory however is sure it will be a girl and scoffs at any talk otherwise.

So here is what’s going on:
Our grain of rice is 15 weeks old and almost 5 inches long now. It has developed a full répertoire of facial expressions. The body is covered by an ultrafine hair called lanugo and eyebrows and eyelashes are beginning to grow. The joints are fully functional and all the baby’s limbs can move. It’s making initial sucking, swallowing and breathing motions and is probably sucking its thumb.

Elizabeth’s enlarged heart is pumping about 20% more blood than before pregnancy. This volume will increase throughout the pregnancy for an ending increased heart output of 30-50%. The uterus is the size of a small melon and it feels cool. She can’t feel the baby moving yet but looks forward to a couple weeks from now when the baby books say she will. She’s definitely growing and looking cute in maternity clothes.

It’s been a while since my last post but I’ve been busy. I’ve been growing from the size of a strawberry to a medium shrimp to a lime and now to an apple, 2.5 - 3 inches and 1.5 ounces. I’ve got 20 teeth buds, finger and toe nails, taste buds and my external genitalia are showing if anyone cares. I create urine all the time. My eyes are moving closer together and my ears have positioned themselves on the sides of my head making me look more human. Unfortunately my head is half the size of my body - I’m really hoping that changes. I’m moving around a lot but no one can feel me yet. Mom is starting to expand and is looking forward to the second trimester.

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.