Remember, a baby is considered full term at 36 weeks, so Antoinette only has 8 weeks to go to meet that mark. Of course, its always better to keep that kid in there as close to 40 weeks as possible. In fact, 85% of all babies born that are not induced, hold out until at least 39 weeks pregnant. And 65% make it until 40 weeks.
As of today, the baby's crown to rump length is 10 inches and from head to toe, he's just a pinch under 16 inches. Billy weighs just under 2.5 lbs. now. A typical Mother at this stage has gained 20+ lbs., but Antoinette is still hovering around the 13-15 lbs. mark. As the little guy grows stronger, the blood vessels in the umbilical are going through a period of rapid growth in order to accommodate the increased nutrients that a rapidly growing child will need (so I included a picture of the umbilical). His brain is becoming more detailed with the telltale grooves and folds that you think of when you think of a human brain. He's packing on brain tissue like he's packing on brown baby fat. Very rapidly. The hair covering his scalp is also getting longer now.
For Antoinette, we've seen some increased nausea, discomfort while sleeping, and a little increased hunger. Her doctor visits have increased to one every two weeks now. As stated before, her next visit to the doctor will involve the sugar water Gestational Diabetes screening test. Also, the baby may have reached the point where the doctor can tell his presentation, or the way that he is generally positioned within the uterus. That can allow the doctor to make a determination on the likelihood of the little guy being breech at birth. Again, this is just a determination of "likelihood" and if found to be positioned feet first, there is still plenty of time for the little guy to flip himself around and right the ship.
No comments:
Post a Comment