Update: 23 Weeks

Peanut is still roasting <3

• Baby is almost a foot long and weighs a little over 1 pound.
• Her weight over the next four weeks will double. Eek.
• Next week marks a critical milestone in women with previa. A major growth spurt lasting several weeks usually starts to turn things toward the better. But in persistent cases, fetal weight gain can start to take a toll on the supporting womb and placenta, increasing the risk of maternal bleeding and premature delivery.
• However, after 23 weeks of pregnancy, if born now, she has a 15% chance of survival. Her odds are going up with each passing day.
• She has begun producing insulin, important for the metabolism of things like cookies and cupcakes.
• Her skin is starting to develop color as blood vessels and capillaries grow under her skin.
• Her lungs are preparing to breathe. She's starting to produce a substance which allows the air sacs in the lungs to inflate and keeps them from sticking together or collapsing.
• Her nostrils will open this week and and the enamel that will cover baby’s teeth is forming.
• All the nerve cells are all in place now and will begin to join together to fully form a nervous system.
• Thanks to a fully developed inner ear, which controls balance, she may soon have a sense of whether she is upside-down or right side up. This is also important because this may entice her to change positions.

Preemie born at 23 weeks