Though I’m barely the size of a kumquat***— a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and I weigh less than a quarter of an ounce, but I’m done with the most critical portion of my development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when my tissues and organ rapidly grow and mature.
I’m swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. My vital organs — including my kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they’ll continue to develop as I get bigger.
If you could take a peek inside, you’d spot minute details, like my tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.
In other developments: I can bend my arms and legs! My hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over my heart, and my feet may be long enough to meet in front of my body. The outline of my spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from my spinal cord. My forehead temporarily bulges with my developing brain and sits very high on my head, which measures half the length of my body. From crown to rump, I am a whopping 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, I will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches!!!!!!
***Oh and by the way, this is what a kumquat looks like
