Week 14

The Babe: We are officially a third of the way through and the babe is a third of the way cooked. Now that the "big stuff" (like skeletal and organ development) is taken care of, the babe starts a period of rapid brain growth, fat buildup and detail work. Highlights this week include: Book 'em Danno! our babe now has fingerprints! You know the babe actually created them all by themselves while swimming around in the amniotic fluid. As the babe moved it's hands, the skin on the tips of the fingers formed unique ridges and folds. That's why no one on earth has the same fingerprints, not even identical twins! The babe's arms are now in proportion to the tiny body, but the legs are still on the short size in comparison. This weeks impressive skills include practicing and controlling voluntary muscle movements and our tiny dancer's movements are no longer the jerky, uncontrollable twitches of yore—the babe now moves with graceful control (hmmm not a genetic component I am guessing). The babe now weighs about an ounce and is the length of a flip phone, or roughly 3 1/2 inches— tripled in size from a mere three weeks ago! Thankfully I can NOT say the same, although I am not looking to compete with the little one! Me: Well, these are supposed to be the glory days of pregnancy...what the junk?!? Just when I think I am getting better, I end up with the FLU!! And not just any flu, only like the worst flu in Katie recorded history! Sunday after lunch...WHAM...vomiting every 40 mins!! But one thing I have learned from excessive throwing up(for those of you who remember the puke list from the first pregnancy) applesauce is nice going down AND coming back up. Some how it retains its sweetness. So after every episode I drank a bunch of water and ate a few scoops of applesauce and waited for the next round. I went to bed telling Ben, "I don't know how I will ever get better?" Monday was a little better, although I spent the day on the couch/bathroom but there were no timed intervals! The worst part about this whole thing is that it seems to have reignited my smell sensitivity which is tried tightly to my nausea which equals I still feel sick all the time! On a more positive note, I went to the doctor yesterday and it turns out I am officially down to my pre-Mary Alice weight!! (even one pound less) All it took was another round of "morning" sickness and the flu! Ben: Is starting to feel sick...boo Mary Alice: STILL TEETHING!! But the highlight of the week is Mary Alice can FINALLY ROLL OVER!!! At least from belly to back. And apparently when she thinks it is time to do something she DOES it! She didn't just learn how to roll herself over, she learned how to SHOOT herself over, no pause, no hesitation just OVER!!