Saturday, August 11, 2007

Monster Update: 20

The Monster now weighs about 10.5 ounces. It's also either around 6.5" long (from head to bottom), or about 10" (from head to heel). That makes the Monster the size of a small cantaloupe (pictured).

In grosser news, a greasy white substance called vernix caseosa coats the Monster's entire body to protect its skin during its long submersion in amniotic fluid. (This slick coating also eases the journey down the birth canal.)Also, the Monster is swallowing more, which is good practice for its digestive system. The swallowing and some cell loss produces meconium, a black, sticky substance which will accumulate in its bowels, and we'll get to see it in the first messy diaper. So that's something to look forward to.

Text adapted from Baby Center.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

In the horrible name category, a woman visited her doctor and was told about meconium. She thought it was the most beautiful name she had ever heard and named her son that, despite the doctor's warning that meconium means poo.