Week 14

Baby: Your baby measures about 3.2 to 4.1 inches from crown to rump now and weighs almost an ounce. The ears are shifting from the neck to the sides of the head, and the neck is getting longer and chin more prominent. Facial features and unique fingerprints are all there. Your baby is beginning to respond to outside stimuli. If your abdomen is poked, the fetus will try to wriggle away.

Mom-to-be: You’re probably wearing maternity clothes now. Your skin and muscles are starting to stretch to accommodate your growing baby. You may notice some constipation because pregnancy hormones relax the bowel.

Next Monday I have (yet another) doctor’s appointment, so hopefully I’ll (finally) have another update on how the small one is doing, but for now you’ll simply have to pretend to care about my progress.  Well, I’m not yet wearing maternity clothes, but I do need my Bella Band for all my pants with the exception of some absurdly low rise capris that I can’t wear to work anyway.  That being said, I do think I have a small bump, and both my very dear friend and my little brother, both of whom were recently visiting, agreed that they can tell I’m pregnant but only because they know what I usually look like.  As for the constipation, well, if you’ve been reading this blog at all you’ll know I’ve pretty much covered that one to the extent that I think I may find it oppressive to have to go on a daily basis as it will have been so damn long. 

In other news, I think my nesting instinct may be on the verge of kicking in, as I had a serious hankering to go look at baby gear “just to see.”  I resisted, but I did not expect to want to look at glass bottles or slings so soon.  That being said, I did break down and start a pottery barn kids registry online, but only because I thought the organic blankets were cute and neutral (aka non-gendered).  And work was slow. 

Overall rating: 8 (why not – the bad symptoms of trimester No. 1 have largely passed and the hugeness of No. 3 seem an eternity away.  it’s like the spring break of pregnancy, but without the drinking.)