The Pea - Week 18

How your baby's growing:
 
Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound. 

The most noticeable changes to my body the last few weeks (apart from the ever growing bump) is the presence of backache. I can feel myself trying to support my bump when I walk or stand and it's making my lower back very stiff. I'm thinking about getting a massage from a lady trained in pregnancy massage to relieve my aching muscles. Have any of my readers had massage during pregnancy? Did it help?

There are only two weeks until I'm halfway there. That's a scary thought. I've quite enjoyed living my life week-by-week as I observe my ever changing body and find out how the baby is growing but I still can't believe how quickly it has gone. We have decided to find out the sex of the baby during the next ultrasound and I'm so excited to see him/her on the screen again.