Pregnancy Tracker: 9 weeks

Since last week, I can say I've been feeling a little bit better.  Not a lot.  A little.  My stomach is still having some issues, and my continually-expanding uterus isn't exactly the most enjoyable feeling. TMI? Sorry. Just tellin' it like it is!  I finally gave in and bought a huge box of saltine crackers to help with some of the nausea.  And guess what? Since the day I bought those damn crackers, not one sign of nausea.  Go figure!  $1.28 well spent if you ask me!

Here is the latest at 9 weeks:

Your new resident is nearly an inch long — about the size of a grape — and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form (and if you know the story behind Eric's daughter, Cailin, you know how important the heart development is to us) — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks. Her eyes are fully formed, but her eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones. Now that your baby's basic physiology is in place, she's poised for rapid weight gain (oh yay!!).

You still may not look pregnant even if your waist is thickening a bit. You probably feel pregnant, though. Not only are morning sickness and other physical symptoms out in full force for most women, but you may feel like an emotional pinball as well.

Mood swings are common now (ya think?!!!) — it's perfectly normal to feel alternately elated and terrified about becoming a parent. Try to cut yourself some slack. Most women find that moodiness flares up at around six to ten weeks (ding ding ding), eases up in the second trimester, and then reappears as pregnancy winds to a close.