Yeah! Second Trimester here we come!

Hi all...sorry it's been so long. Good news this week is that we're starting our second trimester. I am very excited about it since now big things are starting to happen. The baby is going to start growing like a weed, I'm going to be feeling great (so I've been told), and I'll stop hearing... "you don't look pregnant!" I know a lot of you are probably thinking that I'm crazy for saying that but I am actually looking forward to it.

Here's the update on the baby's growth this week...

Head to bottom, your baby's 3 1/2 inches long — about the length of a lemon — and weighs about 1 1/2 ounces. Her body's growing faster than her head, which now sits upon a more well-defined neck. By the end of this week, her arms will have lengthened and will be in proportion to the rest of her body. (Her legs still have some growing to do, though.) She's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair all over her body (called lanugo). Her liver starts secreting bile this week, a sign that it's already functioning properly, and her spleen starts contributing to the production of red blood cells. She's also producing and discharging urine into the amniotic fluid, a normal process that she'll keep up until birth. You still can't feel your baby's movements, but her hands and feet (which are now half an inch long) are more flexible and active. Thanks to brain impulses, her little facial muscles are getting a workout as she squints, frowns, and grimaces. She can grasp now, too, and she may be able to suck her thumb.

Here's what the baby looks like now...
A lot of people ask if I can feel the baby move. I'm not sure... I do get sharp pains all around my abdomen when I'm still. I've been told that movement feels like fluttering or hunger pangs, these definately don't feel like that, but are random and move around... I guess I'll know when they get more rapid and defined.

Dave and I are really excited this week... we're leaving for the beach on Saturday for a week. We're going to Sunset Beach which is just north of the South Carolina border, near Myrtle Beach. We are so anxious to be there, to see Copper run in the waves and to get some time away from the house and the office. Dave's family is all going to be there... him mom, dad, sister, brother and two neices... I especially can't wait to see them since I'm pretty sure they don't know about the baby yet. BethAnn, the youngest neice (5) couldn't stop talking about her teacher who was pregnant. She thought it was the coolest thing and I can't wait to share the news with her. I know Katie will be thrilled as well... there hasn't been a baby in the family since BethAnne was born.

So this week we're frantically trying to gather things that need to be packed and are wondering how we're going to get it all in the truck! Not only do we need to bring beach essentials, but we need to pack our computers as well since this is a working vacation. This should be interesting...

The crypt is looking great. Dave has been working hard and has gotten the walls all skim coated with mortar. All we have left to do now is to DryLoc the walls and put in the shelves. After that I'll have my basement back! I was hoping to have it done before we leave, but it looks like we'll finish up when we get back. I guess it's something to look forward to.

Well, hope everyone has a great week... I'll try to post pics from the beach this week so you can all be jealous!

love to all.