34 Weeks

I walked past a mirror the other day and was shocked at what I saw. I have a huge, giant belly. I guess I haven't been looking in too many full length mirrors lately because I had no idea that I looked this pregnant. I mean, I know I am very pregnant, but I guess I didn't realize how huge my belly has gotten. Ever since I saw my reflection, it dawned on me that I have a human inside of me. Not a tiny little fetus, but a human. A human big enough to live and breathe on the outside and make her mama unrecognizable in a mirror. My huge, giant belly has a huge, giant human inside. Whoa.

Stats


Weight gain: I'll post the final number at the end, but I have a feeling it's not looking good for me. I made some awesome apple streusel cheesecake bars on Friday and half of the 9x13 pan is gone. It's so weird, I'm not sure where all those cheesecake bars went....
Stretch marks: This has been hard for me. I found some stretchies on my belly this weekend. I never got any with Beatrice and seeing these new ones really freaked me out. I know I should be proud of my body and consider these marks my battle scars of pregnancy, but it's really hard watching my body change in a way that probably won't ever be the same again.
Movement: There were a couple days this weekend when I didn't feel her much at all. I was this close to going to the hospital for monitoring, but decided to try eating something sweet and lying down for a bit. So I ate some apple streusel cheesecake bars and got her going. She's been wild ever since.
Cravings: Ice. And chocolate cake. Intensely.
Sleep: Pretty good. The late pregnancy exhaustion has hit me hard so falling asleep is no problem anymore. Also, I haven't had any caffeine in 2 weeks or so. It helps me sleep so much better.
Best moment this week: Taking a long walk to the park with my little family and not feeling like I was going into labor.
Gender: Still a girl.
Labor signs: Lots of contractions, lots of pelvic pressure, and lots of other late pregnancy stuff.
What I miss: My stretch mark-free belly. They'll go away after I have Penelope, right?
What I'm looking forward to: Meeting the huge, giant human growing inside of me.
Weekly wisdom: Growing humans is the coolest, most amazing experience God has allowed me to have. Stretch marks and all, what a blessing sweet babies are. But they'll go away, right???
Milestones: MY FIRST STRETCH MARKS.

There are stretch marks under my shirt. And a huge, giant human. And maybe some apple streusel cheesecake bars.