Week 9

What happened to week 8, you ask? Apparently, Peanut is too good for week 8. The ultrasound technician bumped us up a couple of days, and between that and my late blogging, I'm afraid you'll have to satisfy your week 8 needs somewhere else.


Peanut is about the size of a grape now--about an inch long--and while most pregnancy books describe her as looking more "human-like" now, we'll let you be the judge. It's a good thing full size humans don't look like this.

We're continuing to monitor the blod clots in my uterus (which is why we've had so many ultrasounds) and are happy to report that they remain small, and are, according to the doctor, not something we should be too concerned about. We ask you to continue to pray that they would completely go away so that we could take the doctor's advice.

Her heart was beating like crazy today -- 174 beats a minute -- and at this stage of development her heart has finished dividing into four chambers. Her eyelids will remain fused shut for some time, and her tiny nose, nostrils and earlobes are getting more distinct. She's passed from the embryonic to the fetal stage and should begin some rapid weight gain soon.

Meanwhile, I'm continuing to suffer from and whine about morning sickness (a misnomer, by the way--it actually lasts from sun up to sun down). I'm twice as tired growing our little Peanut as I was when I was growing Abby, probably due in part to the fact that I'm chasing Abby around now. Since the energy exerted by my body in this stage of pregnancy is the equivalent of running a marathon every day (which I was not trained for), I'd like to point out that I am actually running that marathon with a ten-month-old on my hip. Let's see Uncle Matt try that one.

We praise God this week for good reports on Peanut's development. What a miracle this is, and what a blessing to be entrusted with another one of His little ones to care for!