Second Trimester

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a safe New Year!

It's hard to believe, but I rang in the new year with the second trimester. I feel great...still a little tired but I'm doing much better than I was a month ago. Some of you have been asking about belly pictures. I haven't posted any because I don't have a belly yet. I'm in the "I ate too much for lunch" phase of the pregnancy. I have a little pooch but nothing noticeable. I'm still wearing my regular clothes. My friend, who's due in June, said the next phase, "is she fat or is she pregnant," is looming right around the corner. As soon as I see something, I'll be sure to let everyone know (and post a picture).

As for the baby, some of you may find this interesting...according to BabyCenter.com, this week's big developments are: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.

In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon (it's really weird to think that I have something the size of a lemon growing inside of me) — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

As for Mike, he's doing as well as can be expected after Texas came back in the final seconds of the fourth quarter to upset Ohio State 24-21 in the Fiesta Bowl. Can anyone tell me what the heck happened to the Big 10 in the bowl games this year? UGH!