Week 10 - Changes and Development

Ten weeks is finally here, which means we're 1/4 of the way through this process! WOOHOO! So far no morning sickness (only slight nausea). My biggest complaint is that I'm hungry all the time at the moment, but I suppose it could be much worse.

During week 10, my baby is starting the process of becoming a genius, by developing 250,000 neurons every minute!! Peanut is also 1.25 to 1.68 inches long and weighs approximately 0.18 ounces (which is about equal to the weight of a quarter). Week 10 is supposed to be a big milestone because nearly all of the body plan for the baby has been laid out and most things are present--it's just all in miniature form still.

Here are some more developments for this week:

• The baby's eyelids are no longer transparent
• The outer ears start to assume their final form
• Tooth buds begin to form
• Your baby will have fully separated fingers and toes
• The embryonic tail will have disappeared completely
• The bones of your baby's skeleton will have begun to form
• The eyes have moved from the sides of the head closer to the front of the face
• The palate and the roof of the mouth form
• The stomach moves into its final position
• Taste buds begin to form
• Neck muscles are forming
• The clitoris appears in females, and the ovaries begin to descend
• The testes will start producing the male hormone testosterone in males
• The two lobes of the lungs extend into many tiny tubes (bronchioles)
• The diaphragm begins to separate the heart and lungs from the stomach.
  

So that's what we can expect throughout the next week! We also have our next Doctor's appointment on Monday, August 18. Hopefully everything goes well there and I will be able to give you an update after that!