Twenty Four Weeks

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.See what your baby looks like this week.

It’s kind of alarming that my uterus is about the size of a soccer ball – that just sounds HUGE! I’ve been experiencing some aching pains and can tell the baby’s stretching everything it can to get more space.

Frank and I trekked out to Nebraska for Thanksgiving and it was so much fun seeing everyone and meeting the newest cousins – Addi, Ellie and Drew. We had plenty of quality time, sitting, talking, playing Wii, singing karaoke, shopping and of course eating! It was really nice to catch up and it’s like I never left. We did find out that my cousin, Susie, is expecting number two! Her little girl Addison is 10 months old, so these two will be nice and close. Congratulations Susie and Anthony!

We had a karaoke party and when everyone was singing, the baby was doing flips! I think he could hear everyone. Here’s a pic of my cousin Becky feeling the baby boogie inside me.
The flights were tough ‘cause we missed our connecting flight on the way out and had to spend a few extra hours in the Milwaukee airport. And let me tell you, there’s not much to do in the Milwaukee airport. We did a lot of people watching. On my way back they literally held the plane for me while I waddled across twenty gates. I made it by minutes. I definitely learned my lesson that paying a little more for a nonstop flight is sooo worth it, especially being pregnant and especially with kids.

I caught a cold on the way back home and was out for the count last week. I missed two days of work with a mild fever. The worst part about being pregnant and having a cold is that I can’t take anything! I can take Tylenol and Benadryl in moderation. So I took Tylenol for the fever and one Benadryl to help me sleep. It’s now been about a week and I’m still fighting it. Lots of soup and liquids and rest. Last night I went to sleep around 7 p.m. and didn’t wake up until 6 a.m. I haven’t had much of an appetite the past few days. And if you know me, you know that’s completely out of character! I think I even slept through dinner last night, but I know I have to force myself to eat, at least small meals throughout the day. So this morning I got a decaf peppermint mocha late and a bagel – both with huge calorie counts that should make up for my sleeping in last night.

We had another ultrasound with the specialist on Thursday and all looks great! Dr. Smith at NJ Prenatal Associates is really nice and made it a point to mention that “we had a beautiful baby.”

I smiled said, “you probably say that to all your patients.”

He said, “No, sometimes I just tell them you have a baby.”


Here's a pick from our 24 week ultrasound - the first is the 2D and the seond is the 3D. The second looks like the baby has his hand near his mouth.
Stat Updates:
Baby weighs about 1 pound, 4 ounces
Measuring about 10 days a head of schedule
My blood pressure was a respectable 100/60 – it keeps doing down!
Gained one or two pounds, which is great!

So far, we won’t have any more ultrasounds unless I have gestational diabetes or to check the position of the baby towards the end. Right now he’s been breech, but we’re hopeful he’ll flip around.

We have our monthly doc apt on Friday with Dr. Purdue. I’m taking my second glucose screening and I’m not worried. I passed the first with flying colors, so let’s hope that continues. I’m going to start talking to Dr. Purdue about the delivery and share Frank’s amazing story of his three deliveries! I’d love if there was some way he could safely help deliver his son, but not sure what the doctor will think.