6 Weeks!

Hello!

Today marks the 6th week for me! Supposedly our baby is the size of a sweat pea right now -- but my gut looks like our baby is the size of a grapefruit. I am BLOATED. It's a very unsexy side of early pregnancy but it's reality. I am wearing my bella band at work so I can walk around with my pants unbuttoned and I spend most of my time in sweetpants at home. Loose baggy ones. =) It's a little disappointing that I can't really walk around with maternity clothes on at 6 weeks. I'll look rediculous and have to explain to everyone that I simply have a gas baby sticking out as the human baby is still neatly tucked behind my pelvic bone. As unlady like as it is to be this...eh em...gassy...**blush**...it's all a good sign that things are working normally. I'm relieved that Eric loves me and that he is trapped in this marriage thus unable to move out simply because I'm gassy. He's being very understanding to my face. =)

3 more weeks until my first OBGYN appointment. I'm REALLY looking forward to that so I can tell the world I'm pregnant. I hate keeping secrets! Besides -- I'm ready to be out with it! I want to start planning and doing and moving forward with nesting.

Here is the medical side of what is going on inside my body. Please take note of the 2nd paragraph which addresses the Pregnancy Schizophrenia I wrote about earlier! ah ha! I told you!

How your baby's growing:

This week's major developments: The nose, mouth, and ears that you'll spend so much time kissing in eight months are beginning to take shape. If you could see into your uterus, you'd find an oversize head and dark spots where your baby's eyes and nostrils are starting to form. His emerging ears are marked by small depressions on the sides of the head, and his arms and legs by protruding buds. His heart is beating about 100 to 160 times a minute — almost twice as fast as yours — and blood is beginning to course through his body. His intestines are developing, and the bud of tissue that will give rise to his lungs has appeared. His pituitary gland is forming, as are the rest of his brain, muscles, and bones. Right now, your baby is a quarter of an inch long, about the size of a lentil.

How your life's changing:

You may find yourself developing a bit of a split personality — feeling moody one day and joyful the next. Unsettling as this is (especially if you pride yourself on being in control), what you're going through is normal. Ricocheting emotions are caused partly by fluctuating hormones. But hormones aside, your life is about to change in a big way — and who wouldn't feel emotional about that?

Spotting (spots of blood on your underpants or toilet tissue after urinating) or bleeding is relatively common in early pregnancy, affecting up to a quarter of pregnant women. It may occur in a normal pregnancy, but sometimes it can be the first sign of miscarriage or an ectopic pregnancy. If you have any spotting or bleeding, call your provider.