It's A Girl...Michaiah Eliana Stephens

Michaiah (pronounced mik-ay-ah) Eliana was brought into full view this morning. We are so blessed to even be given the opportunity to bring a life into this world. Now we just pray that the Lord will continue to bless us with a healthy baby girl. She had the hiccups this morning during her photo shoot which was really cute. She wasn't moving around too much though as she was probably tired from mommy's workout this morning! It was absolutely amazing to see the chambers of her heart working and her kidneys as well. We got to see her swallowing too. They estimate that she is 11 ounces...almost 1 lb!

Her Foot

So, what's she up to this week? Her sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. She is also able to hear me so I'd better get my voice ready to start some singing! She's about the size of an heirloom tomato and her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid. The vernix and amniotic fluid are responsible for that positively intoxicating baby smell.