Week 21

Caleb's probably almost a pound now and should be about 10.5 inches long, about the length of your average carrot. His movements are much more pronounced now and he's getting big enough that I'm often able to tell where in the womb he's hanging out at a given moment. He's definitely following the standard fetal pattern of sleeping when I'm up and moving around when I'm still, which is making getting to sleep at night a little bit of an adventure. It's hard to go to sleep, no matter how tired you are, when there's a baby doing karate in your belly. His eyebrows and eyelids are developed by this point and his face is beginning to settle into what it will look like when he makes his big debut.

I'm definitely getting larger, though not so large as to make things like washing dishes and doing laundry uncomfortable yet. I'm just large enough, in fact, to make carrying Abby on one hip inconvenient, but she and Caleb usually have a fun time seeing who can kick the other the hardest through my belly whenever I have to carry her around somewhere.

There's only so much room in this little (growing) belly of mine, and unfortunately for myself and pregnant women everywhere, babies and normal-sized bladders do not coexist well. Frequent trips to the bathroom, small meals and constant snacking are a big part of my life now as Caleb declares his dominion over what was my abdomen.

And, like his big sister before him, this little guy is perfectly content to spend all of his time doing jumping jacks on my sciatic nerve. With Abby, this resulted in a left leg that was, for the most part, numb for the last 4 months of my pregnancy. Caleb has kicked off his attacks on my sciatic nerve much earlier, leaving me with residual pain that resonates from my left hip down to my ankle and feels a little like someone trying to drill a butt-cheek-sized drill into my left butt cheek. I've not yet found a position--either moving, sitting, standing or lying down--that offers any relief. (Moms who've been there....any thoughts?)

Please pray with us this week that this nerve pain would ease up, and that if it doesn't, I would at least be able to go about my day normally. And as always, thanks for your continued prayers for a healthy baby boy and his continued development over these last 5 months!