Twenty Weeks - Halfway there!!

Alec weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom, and about 10 inches from head to heel. (For the first 20 weeks, we use measurements taken from the top of the baby's head to his bottom — known as the "crown to rump" measurement. After that, we use measurements from head to toe. This is because a baby's legs are curled up against his torso during the first half of pregnancy and are very hard to measure.)

A greasy white substance called vernix caseosa coats his entire body to protect his skin during its long submersion in amniotic fluid. (This slick coating also eases the journey down the birth canal.)

Alec is swallowing more, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky substance that's the result of cell loss, digestive secretion, and swallowed amniotic fluid. This meconium will accumulate in his bowels, and we'll see it in his first messy diaper.

We have an ultrasound tomorrow. The needs for ultrasound exam are:

To check the baby's growth and size
To determine the age of the baby
To identify multiple pregnancy (twins or more)
To identify (or in this case confirm) the baby’s gender
To look for major birth defects
To check the amniotic fluid (is there too much or too little?)
To check the baby's well-being and movement
To determine the baby’s delivery date