Sixteen Weeks

How your baby's growing
At 4 1/2 inches long (head to bottom) and 3 1/2 ounces, your baby is about the size of an avocado. In the next three weeks, she'll go through a tremendous growth spurt, though, doubling her weight and adding inches to her length. Her lower limbs are much more developed now. Her head is more erect than it has been, and her eyes have moved toward the front of her head. Your baby's ears are close to their final position, too. Some of her more advanced body systems are working, including her circulatory system and urinary tract. Her heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, circulating her total blood volume through her body many times. (By the end of your pregnancy, this will increase to about 190 quarts.) The patterning of her scalp has begun, though her hair isn't recognizable yet. Although closed, her eyes are moving (slowly), and she's even started growing toenails.

How your life's changing
Have people been telling you how good you look? The "glow of pregnancy" is real, thanks to increased blood flow to the skin. You may be enjoying yourself more, too, now that your hormones have stabilized and nausea has eased up. You're also probably less anxious about something happening to your baby (the risk of miscarriage drops dramatically after the 14th week) which likely adds to your overall sense of well-being.

Soon you'll experience one of the most wonderful moments of pregnancy — feeling your baby move. While some women notice "quickening" as early as 16 weeks, most don't until about 18 weeks or more. If this is your first baby, don't be too anxious — you may not be aware of your baby's movements until 20 weeks or so. The earliest movements may feel like little flutters, gas bubbles, or even like popcorn popping. Over the following weeks they'll start to feel unmistakably like kicks.

Dawn’s Notes

When did I get so FAT?????

Hot Mama

I look like crap.

My hair is now brown. I have sacrificed the identity that the entire world has known since my adolescence. I am plain Jane. No longer the red-head that could easily be picked out of a line-up.

I suppose it was my choice, but how much choice did I have? The effects of hair color on an unborn fetus are unknown, but scientific studies have proven that the chemicals are absorbed through the mother’s scalp. UGH! What kind of mother would I be if I exposed my baby to unnecessary chemicals every 2-3 weeks just for the sake of vanity?

I suppose I didn’t have to go brown. I could have gone for the red hair with dark brown roots a mile long look. But I do have some pride.

As if the hair is not bad enough, I am destined to spend the next several weeks living in elastic pants.

And the flat shoes I ordered have arrived.

So I am plain, fat, and short.

Every girl’s nightmare….

But ironically, my dream come true.