Growing Baby and Belly

Side view of the baby belly.

Front view.

The pictures are pretty terrible quality, but here we are at 23 weeks. (Well, 23 weeks tomorrow...) She is over a pound and a half and over 11 inches long. Her sweet little face is almost fully formed. She is still working on getting some more fat on her little bones, (which if she takes after Micah or I, this will most certainly happen since we were both big babies.) She is gaining around 6 ounces per week these days. Meaning next week, she'll probably be about 2 pounds. She can hear air exhaling from my lungs, gurgles in my belly, my voice, Micah's voice, and probably around 78 fourth graders voices as well. :)

I am feeling pretty good with the pregnancy still, but I have noticed a few differences. First of all, things just feel heavier. It feels like there are weights in my belly. It's also much itchier these days, meaning lots of belly stretching. I am so thankful for no stretch marks so far! I am also getting those Braxton Hicks contractions at times. My belly gets really really super tight and hard and a little uncomfortable. I am on my feet constantly now with my job, so I wonder if that's why I am starting to notice those. Adia also loves my right side. She kind of balls up on that side and my belly gets crooked. It looks strange when that happens. I notice that I have the urge to urinate all the time. I could use the restroom and then feel like I need to go again 2 minutes later. Very annoying. Adia's kicks are precious though, and I love feeling her grow stronger every day. I also think my belly is getting bigger by the minute. I used to stand in the doorway with my students as they would line up. I could easily fit with one of my kids in the doorway. Now, I am bumping them with my belly... one of my kids from Africa has a new baby brother. He feels like he knows all about pregnancy since his mom just went through it. He said with his precious little accent, "I say 2 or 3 months from now, you and I not fit in the door together."

The kids I teach are so cute. The boys will ask me, "Are you having a baby?" When I say, "Yes," they always ask, "Is it a boy?" When I tell them that she's a girl, they are always so disappointed. It's so funny. The girls usually get very giddy and excited that I am having a girl and they want to know aaaalllll about it! I have several little hands that pat my belly on a daily basis. Instead of getting annoyed about it, I've decided to view it as Adia already receiving a lot of love and care from these little ones.