Booty-Shaking: 23 Weeks

I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing my sense of movement is so well developed now. I can definitely feel mom moving and dancing. She went to a wedding last weekend and introduced me to “Shout”, “The Electric Slide” and “The Cha-Cha Slide”. It made her a little nervous on Sunday when I wasn’t moving as much in the afternoon, but I was tired from all the dancing she did the night before!

This week, I weigh just over a pound and am comparable now to a large mango. Mom and dad can tell I am getting bigger all the time because all my kicking and moving is increasingly frequent and obvious. Blood vessels in my lungs are developing this week and preparing me to be able to breath outside of this comfortable home. Sounds are also becoming more and more clear to me and frequent loud noises (the vacuum, the sound of a boat engine, the music in the car) are becoming pretty familiar. Hopefully they won’t be a big surprise to me when I come in October! I have a feeling I will be spending time around a vacuum, in a car, and next spring/summer, on a boat!

Mom went to the doctor this week for a check-up and everything looks good for both mom and me. My heartbeat was between 145 and 150, which is where it has been for the last few months. I made sure to get in a few good, strong kicks when the doctor was trying to measure it. Mom’s blood pressure is good and her weight gain was only slight. No mention from the doctor about being careful this time!

Mmmmm... 22 Weeks

Taste buds have started to form this week! Though I haven't yet been able to actually taste anything, I grow more and more excited all the time to experience this sugar thing my dad seems to enjoy so much. This week, my brain and nerve endings have started to process the sensation of touch - so be careful with all that poking and rubbing you do to my mom's belly. The other thing happening this week is that I am developing tooth buds beneath my gums. I am hopeful they turn out like either mom or dad's teeth since neither one of them ever needed braces. I imagine they hope for the same thing.

We appear to be moving away from fruit comparisons as at 22 weeks, I am being compared to a spaghetti squash at about 1 pound. At this point, I look more or less like a miniature newborn with lips, eyelids, and eyebrows. Although my eyes have formed, my irises still do not have pigment (though I think there is a good chance they will turn out to be brown like my dad's - those seem to be dominant in his family).

Mom and dad are having a garage sale this weekend in an effort to sell some household items and make more room for me. My nursery is almost completely empty with the exception of a pile of baby items they have begun to collect. Since my crib bedding was just delivered this week, I think mom and dad will soon be able to pick wall colors (they've already started looking and have a healthy stack of samples to go through).

I continue to move around as often as I can in here. It's funny because no matter how many times I kick my mom, she still giggles. She seems to really enjoy this pregnancy thing!

Week 21 - Ultimate Fighting

This week, I am comparable to a carrot, with a length at approximately 10 ½ inches long (head to toes). I have formed eyelids and eyebrows (that have the potential to develop into the “McMillen Eyebrows”… uh-oh!). At this point, I am beginning to absorb small amounts of sugar through the amniotic fluid I can now swallow. Yummmm… The other development this week is that my bone marrow is doing the job of making blood cells which, until now, had been done by my liver and spleen.

Aside from all the growing I am doing this week, I am also beginning to train to be the next Ultimate Fighter. I spend a lot of time kicking and moving about, serving as a reminder to my mom that I am doing just fine in here. It was this week, too, that she started to feel (and see) some of my movements from the outside of her belly. In fact, the first time I did it, she gasped! She grabbed dad’s hand right away and put it on the same place I kicked hers. She asked me to do it again so I did. At first, dad thought mom was faking it but then realized there was no way she could duplicate the same movement on her own. I think he was surprised and excited. I plan to continue to train, so for those of who enjoy touching mom’s belly, it should provide some entertainment for you!
I think mom and dad have found my nursery bedding, though they haven’t ordered it yet. Once that is done, they will finally be able to start deciding on wall colors and decorations. They better hurry up – I plan on using that room in about 4 months!

1/2 Way at 20 Weeks!

20 weeks means we are half way to my birthday! It’s hard to believe how quickly time has passed. At this point, I probably measure around 6 1/2 inches from head to bottom, but about 10 inches from head to heel. Going forward, measurements will be from my head to my heels since my legs are stretched out better now than they ever have been. You may wonder what fruit is approximately 10 inches long? A banana! That is this week’s comparison.

During the last ultrasound mom and dad got to see how active I am. Now, mom gets to feel it. She is noticing some of my movements now but I am most active around lunchtime and in the evenings. She must like when she can feel it because she usually pats or rubs her belly after I do it (probably hoping I will keep going). Hopefully soon dad will be able to feel it from the outside.

I should have a crib, dresser, and changing table when I come, which is a good thing because I was beginning to worry I would have to sleep in a dresser drawer. Mom and dad ordered a set on Sunday but it is backordered a few weeks. It should be nursery-ready by mid-July! Looks like mom and dad will have to pick bedding and colors for the room. It’s time for them to start painting!

Say Cheese at 19 Weeks

What a week! I started being able to hear a bit last week but this week I can hear voices - especially my mom's. What I have found out, though, is that she sings - a lot... especially when she is in her car. Let's just hope I don't get my singing abilities from her. She also talks to me quite a bit along with dad, so I am starting to learn his voice, too.

Mom and dad got to see me this week through an ultrasound. I don't think they had realized how big I had gotten until now. They saw my arms, legs, feet, fists, head, heart, bladder, kidneys, eyes, chin, and all other important body parts in place. While mom can't feel any real movements yet, it was very clear that day I am a kicker and mover. The doctor called me "uncooperative" because I moved around a lot and made it very hard to take pictures. I get it honestly - I come from two parents that both can't seem to sit still for more than 5 minutes. They also told mom and dad it was a good thing they didn't want to know if I was a boy or girl because it would have been near impossible to tell that day. The secret is still safe!

Websites would have you believe I am supposed to be 8 1/2 oz by this week and the size of an heirloom tomato (still considered a fruit!), but I according to the ultrasound, I am closer to 13. Mom said something about hoping it wasn't an indication of my size at birth. My heart rate that day was also 147, which is close to where it was at the last doctor's appointment.

Mom also had to go to her doctor this week for another check-up even with the ultrasound only days before. Everything checked out with the doctor, as well, who also mentioned the fact that I like to move around. I guess I made it hard for her to follow my heartbeat. Once she found it, though, she measured it at 140. The doctor did caution mom to watch her weight gain. Though it's not too much over what is recommended, she should be careful going forward. Evidently, her new found love for ice cream may have to subside - a disappointment for me, as well.

I can tell mom and dad are growing more and more excited every day - I can make out frequent giggling and laughing noises and I know dad touches mom's stomach every chance he can. I can only imagine what they will be like when I am actually born!

Week 18 - Gulp!

Week 18 is another week of exciting progress for me! I’ve not only grown in length – around 5 and ½ inches now – but I’m also up to almost 7 ounces! And, now that I have a little more room in here, I am able to flex my arms and legs more (though mom hasn’t yet been able to feel it no matter how hard I try). It seems my fruit comparisons have moved to vegetable comparisons because this week, the websites will say I am the size of a bell pepper.

Nerve endings from my brain are beginning to hook up to my ears, which means I am beginning to be able to hear things slightly. At this point, it sounds a lot like my mom’s heart beat and the occasional stomach rumble. I am excited for the time when I am able to hear her voice along with dads and all of yours. It won’t be long after that mom will be subjecting me to all the mellow, acoustic folk music she so dearly loves (and dad could live without).

The other thing I can do this week is swallow! I can’t wait to put that skill to good use when I get out of here.


Mom is still feeling well and is almost officially in all maternity clothes. Tee-shirts still do the trick but most of her work clothes fit a little more than snug. She was surprised on Mother’s Day this week when she was showered with attention from dad (who bought her a heartbeat monitor), Grandma and Grandpa McMillen (who bought her maternity clothes), Grandma and Grandpa Helmrich (who gave her a rose bush), and Aunt Amanda and Uncle Jonathan (who bought me a handmade bib!). She also received calls and notes from people wishing her a Happy Mother’s Day. I think it surprised her a bit to be considered a mom but I’m pretty sure she relished every minute of it.

Next week is another doctor’s appointment so I will be certain to update you on progress. They will get my heartbeat again so the guessing games can start all over!

Elastic and Cotton – 17 Weeks

This week, my soft cartilage is turning to bone! Milk (or those calcium supplements my mom is taking) does a body good afterall. My umbilical cord is now growing thicker, making it an even stronger lifeline for me. I am also developing fat stores which should provide warmth and energy after I leave this cozy abode.

Mom and dad have started looking at baby furniture and bedding (okay, they started weeks and weeks ago) but have not yet been successful. It’s too bad I don’t have a say in this and have to rely on them to make a good decision about the sheets I will be staring at day in and day out. Mom has these ideas about how my nursery will look but has yet to find the perfect pieces.

I’m also working on making a little more room for myself in here. People who know my mom can tell now that she is pregnant. People who don’t know her say they can’t. Her closet can tell, though, and reminds her of it every time she goes to put on a pair of pants. Her maternity wardrobe is increasing and she is finding more and more comfort in elastic and cotton. She jokes about it, but deep down she is excited to have a pregnant belly. It’s a good thing, because I plan on doing a lot more growing soon!