Week 23

We hit 23 weeks yesterday. Babycenter went a little backwards in the fruit section, likening this week to a mango. They did this to represent the likely baby weight (1 pound), but since our little guy was over 13 ounces three weeks ago, we're pretty sure he's heavier than that. So we'll skip the picture this week and list other things that are going on:

Blood vessels in his lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing him for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze him when he hears them outside the womb.

In terms of how I'm feeling, I'm getting bigger and having more and more trouble sleeping. The extra weight on my hips and shoulders means extra tossing and turning to try to counteract the charlie horses. I've also been snoring more, and I woke myself up twice last night alone with a long snort. Poor Dan!

I feel our little man more and more each day, and there are days that I'm not sure he sleeps at all. Dan has been feeling him more lately too, so it's fun to share what I'm going through with the guy who got me here! Last night we were watching TV and he actually kicked my arm off of my stomach. Apparently he doesn't like that his space is getting more cramped and I clearly wasn't helping.

Another big change is my appetite. I can eat much more these days and I'm hungry a lot. I ate two full Thanksgiving dinners on Thursday (thanks Mom!) and I probably could have eaten a third a few hours later. I'm glad that I have an appetite back especially if it's going to our little boy to help him get bigger and stronger and ready to meet us in four months.