17 Week Update

Today is the last day of week 16 and tomorrow begins week 17. It is hard to believe we are almost half way through. I was listening to the radio today and a song came on..."you're gonna miss this you're gonna want this back you're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast". I want to embrace every moment of life and not wish any moment to pass. I know that towards the end a pregnancy can become uncomfortable but I have asked Justin to remind me that no matter how uncomfortable I may get the most important thing is Jackson and Jacob. Our prayer (and would appreciate anyone who thinks of us to agree with us in prayer in this) is that the boys will not come until we are able to all be together as a family as soon as they are born. I don't want them to come too early and them have to be separated or be away from us. I don't care if that means I have to stay in bed for weeks to keep them from coming too early. I pray for God's complete and perfect timing in all of this. I don't want to wish anything to rush just for my comfort's sake. Oh well....lot of rambling of where my heart is today just to share with you the weekly update for this coming week.

Week 17:
How big is your baby this week? About five inches long and more than three and a half ounces - the size of your open hand. (Open the other one too and imagine your baby cradled in both your arms right after delivery!) Body fat (baby's that is) is beginning to form and will continue to accumulate through the end of your pregnancy. By the time your baby is born, body fat will make up about two-thirds of his or her weight.

Your baby is almost certainly listening up by now. In fact, loud noises - the dog barking, the doorbell ringing - will actually startle your baby (and also get him or her used to such noises; for instance, babies who regularly hear a dog barking will become babies who sleep right through Fido's outbursts). Your baby's eyes (which have fortunately finished their migration to the front of his or her head) are making small side-to-side movements and can even perceive some light, though the eyelids are still sealed. And since practice makes perfect, your baby is sharpening his or her sucking and swallowing skills in preparation for that first (and second...and third) suckle at your breast or bottle. In fact, most of the survival reflexes that your baby will have at birth are being perfected in utero right now.

And here's some proof that your baby is truly one of a kind (as if you needed any!). Within the next week or so, the pads on your baby's fingertips and toes will become adorned with completely individual swirls and creases (aka fingerprints).