Twelve weeks pregnant: 4th ultrasound

Today was (already) our fourth ultrasound. In the very beginning of the pregnancy everything seemed to be going well (despite some worries). Now we were really looking forward hearing similar good news again. And fortunately everything is going very well! We heard the fast heartbeat again and our "Kleintje" ("Little one" in Dutch)--as we now started to call our baby to be--was doing great. It was very impressive (for lack of a better word) to see a small human being of only 6 cm. At this time, the fetus is a real miniature person with all body parts/organs/etc already in place, but of course not yet fully grown. But he/she* is growing fast. Compared to six weeks ago, our Kleintje is ten times as big! Kleintje also takes up more space in Hanneke's womb, although he still has plenty of room to move around.

On the picture, you can see two images of Kleintje. The one on the left is less clear (to spot a baby) but it for example shows a cross-section of the head with the two jaws above each other. The picture on the right more clearly shows a little baby. On the left, you can see the head with a small ear and if you look carefully you can also see something that looks like an eye (at least the shape) and a nose. In front of his face, Kleintje is holding an arm and also just right of the face you can see a small hand. In the middle of the picture you can see the body, with the vertebral column lighter than the rest. And finally, more towards the right are the legs.

So, Kleintje is already a real mini-person but of course he still has to grow and develop a lot of things. But he is already preparing for his later life outside the uterus. Apparently, he might already be sucking his thumb and even yawning and sleeping a bit. I wonder if he is already dreaming about his parents... (he is probably also wondering what we look like)

* Although we don't know whether Kleintje is a boy or a girl, it might be convenient not having to say he/she all the time. We tossed a coin and decided to say "he".