20 weeks, starting #21

Whew!  Today has been a busy day of travel by air and by car--Mom and I are visiting Mimi and other family in Alabama for a few days. 

Peanut, you are 10.5 ounces heavy, 6.5 to 7 inches from "crown to rump", and about 10 inches from head to heel--the length of a banana.  Before now, you were always measured crown to rump, but from now on, you'll be measured head to heel.  You're swallowing more amniotic fluid these days, which is good practice for your digestive system.  You might even taste the things that I eat.  And you're producing meconium, which will become your first stool.   You are steadily gaining fat to keep warm, and buds for permanent teeth are beginning to form.  We love you very much.

I got sick again this past week--once every 7-10 days, like clockwork.  I'm still very tired, and I wonder if I'm getting enough iron--I will ask the midwives about it when I go in a few weeks.  I'm obviously pregnant now, not just fat.  And I am getting clumsy!  My center of gravity is off, and I teeter forward a little--I have to be careful if I'm on stairs or an escalator.  It is becoming more work to get out of the car, get up out of bed, or stand up from the couch. 

I am still not sure I am feeling Peanut move--there's nothing I can be certain of to say, "that was Peanut", instead of "that was gas/digestion/hunger".  I try not to worry about it, but I do.  At our anatomy scan, the only concern the doctor had was a small area of blood between the placenta and the uterus.  Those are supposed to completely line up and stay attached at all times.  The doctor didn't put me on limited activity or bed rest or anything, but he did schedule me for another ultrasound, mid-March, to see if the issue was resolving itself.  He said my body might re-absorb the blood; I might pass the blood; or worst-case, the blood would spread and pull the placenta completely away from the uterus.  This would be very dangerous for me and almost certainly fatal to Peanut.  Like I said, the doctor didn't seem very concerned, and I am trying not to worry.  But I am still cautious and a little anxious after losing Angel.    If you think about it, please pray that this issue would fix itself and that Peanut will be fine.