Week 17 and Week 18

We're off to Cancun tomorrow! I am super excited for a chance to get away for a few days and relax. The last few weeks have definitely been intense, an emotional roller coaster. I should have known that selling and buying a house is not going to be an easy task. We are finally in escrow for the condo and things are moving right along, and I am sure we'll soon be able to find a home that we love, where this little baby will grow to be very happy. Other than the "house stress", I've been feeling pretty good. On the weekends I get a lower back ache and that's not very pleasant, it doesn't really go away until I go to sleep at night and wake up the next morning. My body is used to sitting all day Monday - Friday, so when I am up doing a million things over the weekend, it really seems to take a toll on me, I get exhausted! I still have not gained any weight, but I can sure eat! My belly has grown soo much, I will try and take another picture soon to compare with the last one I took at week 13.

Week 17 Development:
Your baby weighs about 5 ounces now, and he's around 5 inches long — about the size of a large onion. He can move his joints, and his skeleton — until now rubbery cartilage — is starting to harden to bone. His sense of hearing is also developing. The umbilical cord, his lifeline to the placenta, is growing stronger and thicker.

Week 18 Development:
Head to bottom, your baby is approximately 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a large sweet potato) and she weighs almost 7 ounces. She's busy flexing her arms and legs — movements that you'll likely start noticing more and more. Her blood vessels are visible through her thin skin and her ears are now in position and stand out from her head. Myelin (a protective covering) is beginning to form around her nerves, a process that will continue for a year after she's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and Fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If your baby is a boy, his genitals are noticeable, though he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.