Nine Weeks

I forgot to mention that we decided on the fetal nickname of Jellybean. It's unisex and it's a variation of my nickname...Jellybean. Cute, simple and to the point. Plus, I can continue to refer to my flabby stomach as Jelly Belly without it sounding quite so negative :-)

At nine weeks, Jellybean is now called a fetus (which actually means "offspring"). She measures approximately 2.3 centimetres long and resembles a peapod. Jellybean weighs less than 2 grams. Her eyelids are fused and won't open until week 27. The wrists are more developed, ankles have formed, and the fingers and toes are clearly visible. Arms are growing longer and bend at the elbows. By this week's end, the inner workings of the ears are complete (info taken from BabyCenter.ca).

My stomach continues to play the "will we or won't we keep it down" game. I'm all over the map as for what I can eat. No wonder some women gain 60 pounds...my stomach let me eat a bagel, chicken strips and Cheezies today (Cheezies fall into the dairy group don't they?). Mind you, no one can accuse me of over eating, that's for sure. It's just frustrating to get up in the morning and look around the kitchen at all the fruit, bread and cereal and all my stomach wants is some yogurt and a cupcake (with extra icing).

As for other side effects, my body has turned into a furnace. I used to be a constant ice-box. When Mike would climb into bed and cuddle up to me, my feet, legs and bum would be fah-reezing (even if it was 25 degrees out). Now, my lower half is literally hot to the touch, but I don't feel warm (like when you have a fever). On the cooler nights, I'll have Mike, Shandi and two of the cats all cuddled up around me on the bed, in an attempt to each grab their piece of the squishy heat source.

And smells...ohmygod the smells...I had a pretty decent sniffer before this, but man alive, I can sniff out a pot roast being cooked two blocks over. I smell everything and anything and it's touch and go whether my body likes it or not. The biggest smell concern as of late is Joel's room. Mike has already ripped out a 3 ft x 3 ft chunk of carpet (where Joel's diaper leaked) because I cannot walk passed his room without gagging. I'm pretty sure the whole damn carpet is going to have to come out because I still cannot tolerate the smell (I smell it as soon as I walk in the back door). It's a shame to have to rip out the carpet since it's just over two years old, but if Joel continues to have accidents, it's only going to get worse (other people can smell it too, but it's a wretched smell to me). We'll replace the carpet with some nice linoleum like we have in our kitchen/hallway. Maybe if I complain that the van stinks, I really will get my own Ford Explorer for my birthday :-)

Happy Nine Weeks little Jellybean...three more weeks to go 'til we're out of the first trimester!