Week 29

We'll call this "The Week Mom's Toes Disappeared."

Caleb's the size of a butternut squash this week--over 15 inches long and weighing about 2.5 pounds. He's taking up just the right amount of space to cause my belly to completely obscure my view of my toes this week. That's a pretty big pregnancy milestone in my book.

In other news, his muscle, lung and brain development are picking up speed and his head is getting bigger to make room for that growing brain. I didn't really need a pregnancy book to clue me in on that last fact...his freakishly low position in my abdomen has made me painfully aware of the fact that his head is growing. My milk cravings are probably due to the fact that his skeletal development is kicking into overdrive and his tiny hardening bones are soaking up a tremendous amount of calcium each day.

Caleb's already proving to be a very active child, and seems to have enrolled himself in some in utero kickboxing classes. My belly is becoming less and less my own with each day that goes by, and Caleb isn't shy about making his presence known with some feisty kicks, punches and spins when I least expect them. Also, he's falling into a regular pattern of throwing dance parties in my belly from about 7 to 9 each night. (Just about the time dinner's starting to settle, I guess...)

Please pray for all the development that's happening in the third trimester. How awesome to know that God is intimately aware of every stage of our son's development, even down to the number of hairs on his tiny head that we won't see for weeks!

Week 28

Caleb's still growing like a weed, but he's got nothing on his mama. At 37 inches around and 15 pounds heavier than I was 7 months ago, I'd like to think I'm winning the guess-who's-growing contest. (Although to his credit, rounding out a belly is significantly simpler than growing things like a nervous system and internal organs.) I've got my son to blame for almost two and a half of those extra pounds, and he's probably over 15 inches long as we head into the third (and thankfully final!) trimester.

Caleb can blink his eyes now, and is most likely sporting some eyelashes by this point. He's able to detect light that filters through my belly, although there's not too much sunshine breaking through the layers of my fall wardrobe. Billions of neurons are developing in his brain and he's still packing on the extra fat he'll need to stay warm once he makes his debut in snowy January.

I'll go for my awful glucose screening test at next week's doctor's appointment, and then we'll be visiting the office every other week instead of monthly from here on out. Things are winding down in the pregnancy department, but the nesting instinct is only starting to kick into high gear and the household baby preparations are just getting started. There's a room to paint, a fan to hang, boxes of clothes to wash and some sleep to stock up on before this baby can arrive!

Please pray with us this week that we would find ways to prepare Abby for the transition from only child to big sister and that our adjustment to a family of four would be a smooth one.