Week 7: Feelin' Fine

We're well into week seven of the pregnancy and I'm feelin' fine.... seriously. I feel pretty much the exact same as my pre-pregnancy days! There are a few small things that have popped up that I've over-analyzed and decided might be pregnancy related:

• Sleeping hard and having vivid dreams (note: it rained almost every night this week which was a soothing backdrop to "slumber land" and therefore is probably not really a pregnancy symptom)
  
  
• I have developed a slight aversion to tomatoes....maybe. I made some soup earlier in the week and we both thought it was delicious (this recipe if you're interested: http://www.eatliverun.com/tortellini-and-heirloom-bean-soup/  I used kidney beans and spinach and left out the fennel because I don't care for the taste). The next day when I saw the tupperware of leftovers in the fridge it made my stomach turn. I tried to eat some anyway, and pretty much picked out the tortellini and dumped the rest down the drain. Every time I opened the fridge I tried to block it from view! Other tomato products like ketchup and tomato sauce have been fine so far.
  
  
• On a handful of occasions I've felt kind of queasy. Not really nauseous or feeling like I am going to be sick, just kind of "green around the gills" So far having a small, bland snack (simple cereal like shredded wheat or a banana) or a cup of peppermint tea has helped. I also try to focus on my work which helps a little, too.
  

I may not be feeling much, but our sweet little baby sure has been busy growing this week!

The big news this week: Hands and feet are emerging from developing arms and legs — although they look more like paddles at this point than the tiny, pudgy extremities you're daydreaming about holding and tickling. Technically, your baby is still considered an embryo and has something of a small tail, which is an extension of her tailbone. The tail will disappear within a few weeks, but that's the only thing getting smaller. Your baby has doubled in size since last week and now measures half an inch long, about the size of a blueberry.

If you could see inside your womb, you'd spot eyelid folds partially covering her peepers, which already have some color, as well as the tip of her nose and tiny veins beneath parchment-thin skin. Both hemispheres of your baby's brain are growing, and her liver is churning out red blood cells until her bone marrow forms and takes over this role. She also has an appendix and a pancreas, which will eventually produce the hormone insulin to aid in digestion. A loop in your baby's growing intestines is bulging into her umbilical cord, which now has distinct blood vessels to carry oxygen and nutrients to and from her tiny body.

All so amazing.... :-)  Here's what baby blueberry looks like from the outside:

Given that Ben and I are planners by nature, this weekend we are going to start putting together a high level plan for baby preparations. It will run the gamut from preparing the nursery to learning about infant care to purchasing baby gear and more. Preliminary research has been a little overwhelming, so hopefully we can go through this one "bucket" at a time and make our month by month plan of action items. 

What can I say? A couple that makes spreadsheets together, stays together. :-)