The past week has been very exciting with our babymoon to New Orleans! I felt the baby kick for the first time this past Saturday while J.D. and I were eating lunch at Acme Oyster! I think I might be past the stage where it feels like gas bubbles. This felt like several small rhythmic jabs in the lower left part of my stomach. I felt the baby again on the plane on Sunday and again while I was running on the elliptical at the gym on Wednesday morning! J.D. can't wait until he can feel it too (which is probably in another few weeks). Check out my baby bump this week: It's still pretty small in the morning and just gets progressively bigger throughout the day. After dinner (when this picture was taken) it looks HUGE to me! haha!
I'm still feeling great. No nausea, much less tired and weak! I do feel like I have to eat every hour or two or else I start getting a little bit of a sour stomach, but nothing to complain about.J.D. and I have started talking more seriously about names. We've spent awhile going through baby name books and have been adding to the names spreadsheet. (For those of you that don't know, J.D. loves spreadsheets and makes them for everything. We have had this names spreadsheet for three or four years and we've updated once or twice a year. It's fun to go back and look at the names that we used to like and now would never dream of naming our little guy.
We have started referring to Munchkin as "Munch-kie"....We can't wait to meet him and wish he was here this weekend to watch the snow fall!...I guess we'll have to wait until next winter.
Here's what's happening in this upcoming week:
Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot or a banana. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now.
By 21 weeks pregnant, your baby swallows at least several ounces of amniotic fluid each day — not only for hydration and nutrition, but also to practice swallowing and digesting — skills your baby will need as soon as he or she arrives in your arms. And keep this in mind: The taste of the amniotic fluid differs from day to day depending on what you've eaten (spicy enchilada one day, sweet carrots another). And that smorgasbord of tastes won't be lost on your baby. That's because your little one has very developed taste buds already. In fact, researchers have noted that babies who were exposed to certain tastes in utero via the amniotic fluid were more eager to eat foods with that same taste after birth. Want your baby to eat his or her broccoli later? Eat yours now! 
Your developing baby still has a great deal of room in your womb — though like anyone who lives in one space for a long time, this tenant will soon begin to feel cramped. Until those uterine walls start closing in, however, there's plenty of space for twisting, turning, and even an occasional somersault (so that's what you were feeling last night!). 
With all that belly dancing going on, it's hard to believe your baby gets any sleep at all. But believe it or not, your fetus sleeps as much as a newborn, perhaps 12 to 14 hours per day! (Now if only you could get some sleep!)
- White blood cells are under production. Leukocytes (or white blood cells) form our body's defense system. They help fight infections and diseases.
- Your little one's skin has changed from translucent to become more opaque.
- Your infant's tongue is fully formed. If you were able to peek you might catch your son or daughter practicing giving you a raspberry!
- Baby swallows more this week. After your baby takes in amniotic fluid, his body absorbs the water in the liquid and moves the rest into the large bowel. This is good practice for his digestive system!
- Wake and sleep periods become more consistent. Some research suggests that baby sets her internal clock to match the outside world's even before birth! Your eating and sleeping habits as well levels of light and noise serve as her signals.
- Length is now measured crown to heel.
- Baby measures about 10.51 inches (26.7cm) and weighs nearly 12.7 ounces (360g).
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