Eighteen Weeks

Edited to say: someone asked me why I keep changing my profile picture. I change it every week so that it corresponds with Bean. For instance, this week's picture is an 18 week baby sucking his/her thumb in the womb! End edit.

Bean is a punk! For four days I tried to get my mom and Jacob to feel Bean's kicks from the outside. They never could. Then, last night, Bean FINALLY let Jacob feel a kick. I'm annoyed that Nana (my mom) didn't get to feel one; however I am super excited to share the kicks with my hubby. He's felt one and seen one so far. I feel so selfish getting to feel the baby all the time. Although, it's not really selfish when you don't have a choice!

How I'm Feeling
Pretty good these days. I'm back to eating for 12 and sleeping for 84. I dealt with a little head cold over the weekend, but I seem to be recovering quickly enough. Today is my first "real" test with my new eyeglasses. Although I wore them to work in yesterday, I don't think it was a good test day as I was working from home. If I don't get a headache today, it'll be the first time in months!

According to one of these baby sites, my belly button should be popping out soon. Also, it's going to get harder to breathe as Bean pushes up against my lungs. Sounds FUN!

What Bean's Doing
(taken from i-am-pregnant.com)

By week 18 of your pregnancy, your baby's crown-to-rump length is 5 to 5.5 inches long. Your baby continues to develop fat layers and weighs about 5.25 ounces. Your baby will continue to grow and develop, but the rapid growth will slow down for a little while. You will be able to feel your uterus just below your bellybutton. If you put your fingers sideways to measure, you can feel your uterus about two finger-widths below your bellybutton. At this point of your pregnancy, your uterus is approximately the size of a cantaloupe. Although weight gain varies from woman to woman, your total weight gain at this point should be 10 to 13 pounds. There is still space available in your uterus and your baby will be active for periods at a time. Your baby may sit cross legged or turn somersaults.

Around this time, your baby becomes more sensitive to the outside world and shows her presence through powerful kicks and prods. The bones through which sound is passed to the inner ear have hardened and the parts of the brain that receives and processes nerve signals from the ears are developing. This means that your baby can hear now. Your baby will get used to familiar sounds, such as your heart beating, familiar voices, blood rushing through the umbilical cord and other daily routine sounds. Your baby will become startled if he hears a loud sound.

Cravings

• Steamed whole milk (with extra foam)
  
• Corned beef (I've had it three times in the past month...It's STILL not enough!)
• Chocolate chip cookies