Week 18 and Welcoming week 19!

We are now just finishing up week 18 and headed onto week 19. In a week and 2 days we will have our first ultrasound to make sure everything is going smoothly, get a more accurate due date, and find out the Gender of our not-so-peanut-anymore.

This week baby is the size of a Sweet Potato... although at this point ALMOST the size of a Mango. To me, these are fairly the same size... but okay. 

Photo Credit: TheBump 

Week 18: How your baby's growing:
Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.
See what your baby looks like this week.

Week 19: How your baby's growing:
Your baby's sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that she may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.
Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

Credit: BabyCenter

Me at 18 weeks exactly:

Baby has basically hit ONE pound at this point...and well, mommy is starting to put on the weight as well. I'm now weighing in about 122.2 lbs every time I weigh in the morning... so I've totaled about 6-7 pounds so far. It's coming quickly though, about a pound a week as it should!

The added weight DEFINITELY has caused a harder time sleeping, AND a lot more bathroom breaks at work. Sometimes I'm running to the bathroom twice an hour. This baby is using my bladder as a pillow! 

Leg cramps are a common symptom at this time of pregnancy, and I get my share of those as well. I'd say I'm about as normal as it comes when it comes to pregnancy symptoms I guess!

Well we are excited to find out if this baby Brinley is a boy or girl! Next time we post it will probably be revealed!

Stay tuned til next week! =)

The Brinleys