Friday, March 6, 2009

8 weeks--our "blueberry" is now a "lima bean"

Thank you so much for being so understanding of my fears! I do know all the things that could be causing the brown spotting, I know it's old blood, and I know it is very normal and quite common with IVF pregnancies. Also, I know I need to stay relaxed, but it's much easier said than done. However, I am trying and K is relaxed, so that's good.

I just want to clarifiy that we did have an ultrsound on 2/23 that showed a strong heartbeat of 122bpm. Our next scan is to assess growth and will hopefully show a steady strong h/b again. Several of you asked if we could move up the ultrasound appointment to ease our worries, but it's just not possible. K is going out of town for a mini-vacation with her family, which she very much needs and deserves, and won't return until Tuesday night. Our u/s is scheduled for Wednesday morning. Fortunately I have a busy weekend planned, so that will keep my mind occupied. I'm practicing patience and before I know it Wednesday will be at my doorstep!

Today our baby is 8wks and one whole inch long! I read that the baby is now more like the size of lima bean, which botanically speaking isn't a fruit, but rather a seed from a fruit (remember I'm a biologist). Don't argue with me that lima bean pods are a vegetable because they are not--anything that contains seeds is technically a fruit! So, most of your classic grocery store vegetables (green peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers) are really "fruits". I digress. Other sources say the baby is slightly larger than a cherry, which I think seems a little cuter than a lima bean, but I'll stick with the term "bean" for this week.

Much is happening with our "bean" this week. At this point in embryonic development the ovaries or testes are formed, but anyone who says they knew of their baby's gender at this point is a lier, nuts, or some combination of the two. External genital formation isn't visible for several weeks and even at that point requires a skilled technician and a good machine. At this point the baby's fingers and toes are visible with some webbing while the head is still diproportionally large compared to the body. The brain is growing about 100,000 new brain cells every minute! By the end of this week all of his/her little organs will be primitively formed in their proper location. The other cool thing about the 8th week of development is that the baby will begin to have spastic movements (although K won't feel them for several weeks).

Here are some pics of what our little "bean" looks like this week:

(image above taken from http://www.babycenter.com/)

13 comments:

Unknown said...

Wednesday will get here soon and everything will be fine! Your lima bean/cherry will be flourishing. Enjoy your busy weekend. I'm thinking of you.
Linda

ashley said...

Thank goodness, most of the time, time goes by fast. I hope K has a wonderful time on her vacation and that you can keep your mind off of things. Your appointment will be here soon enough!

Nadine said...

And a tomato is a berry - that's about all I remember from botany :).

Hoping that you see said Lima Been soon (I wonder if we get another scan too after ours in a few weeks from now - I know so very very little aout pregnancy especially IVF pregnancy (K knows about the normal preg just not the IVF and I wish I was more of an information source). Hope that time flies until Wed!

Natalia Ritchie said...

Your lima bean is precious...try to worry less and enjoy more. I know that's hard, but you're doing well. Think positive only.

MyLifeMyWorld said...

Lima Bean...so cute. I think they look more like little aliens but lima bean sounds much nice...though I still think lima beans are vegetables, as well as tomatoes and corn! Oh but the corn is a whole other story...

Can't wait to hear how the u/s goes, I'm sure all will be fine. At least K is going on a relaxing vacation, maybe you should too if it's possible? Might be the last time in a while.

Thanks for explaining and have a good weekend!

Heather said...

I love your little bean! Too cute!

I'm sure you're going to have a great ultrasound on Wednesday!

Alana said...

Hope the time flies by and Weds gets here in a hurry so you can see your Little Bean in action again. :)

Meinsideout said...

It will be here soon - I am glad you will be busy this weekend. I love the pics - and as you know, I think of you often and am really pulling for you and K and J and the baby.

Tanya said...

That is one BIG head! Good thing the body catches up eventually.

I knew I was having a boy... okay well I had a feeling I was... at 8 weeks? Maybe. Although I didn't really know until he came out.

Kay said...

You have every reason to feel the way you do..you have been through alot. Just know that you are loved and have tons of people praying for you and K

Erica said...

I had no idea that a lima bean was actually a fruit. Anything with seeds, huh? Definitely didn't know that. Thanks for that little factoid.

Good luck at the next u/s appointment! Are you able to post any u/s pics on your blog? I'd love to see him/her. :)

sara said...

I'm so glad that things worked out okay...I've been keeping your family in my thoughts and prayers!

Sanda said...

By now you made it through the weekend - so I hope Wed gets here real quick so you get to take a peek at your lima bean again!