Your baby, your body, and the prenatal visit, plus tips for the 13th week of pregnancy.

Your baby

The alien look of an early fetus on ultrasound is disappearing as the eyes move closer together and the ears shift into their normal location. The baby’s sex could be viewed if an ultrasound could see that far into the womb, but for now, you'll need to wait until at least the 16th week to find out. Intestines that developed in the umbilical cord continue to move into the baby’s body, and liver and pancreas function begin.

Your body

Many pregnant women wait this long to assure the pregnancy is not going to have any complications before telling friends, family, and co-workers about being pregnant. Most women agree the second trimester is the time when the body feels great and the tummy is not quite big enough to get in the way.

As the uterus grows larger, ligaments in the abdomen may stretch causing a bit of pain. Some expectant women, especially those carrying their first pregnancy, could confuse these pains with contractions. If pain exists, let your doctor or midwife know.

At the prenatal visit

The 13th week is pretty dull medically. The fetus is growing and the body is changing, but that happens throughout the 40 weeks. Hang in there because soon, you will be able to clearly hear your baby's heartbeat. Once a heartbeat is detected, you can ask to hear the heartbeat at any time for a simple connection to your baby. If a heartbeat is not found, an ultrasound can verify heart rate.

Tips for this week

The body is doing great things right now so fatigue may still pop up from time to time. Fatigue can also be caused by eating too few calories. As activity levels increase and you are starting to feel better, calorie intake needs to rise as well. When you're tired, sleep, and try to find a few minutes every day to put your feet up and relax.