33 weeks today...

Each week seems to get faster & faster...I'm 33 weeks today.  7 weeks to go...

Here's what babycenter.com says has been going on:

This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

And whattoexpect.com has this to say:

This week your baby may be anywhere between 17 to 19 inches in length and weigh more than four and a half pounds. At this stage in fetal development, your baby could grow a full inch more this week alone — especially if he has been on the shorter side. Weight gain can range from a third more growth to a full doubling before the big debut.

The level of amniotic fluid in your uterus has reached its maximum at 33 weeks pregnant, making it likely that you have more baby than fluid now. That's one reason why you're probably feeling lots of nudges and pushes — there's less liquid to cushion the blows. (Of course that means you're even closer to your baby now!)

If your uterine walls had eyes, here's what you'd see: your fetus acting more and more like a baby, with his eyes closing during sleep and opening while awake. And because those uterine walls are becoming thinner, more light penetrates the womb, helping your baby differentiate between day and night (now if only baby can remember that difference on the outside!).

And good news! Your baby has reached an important milestone about now: The development of his own immune system that (along with antibodies from you) will be able to provide protection from mild infections.

Just an update on us personally:

Progress is coming along on the crib.  As soon as that is done and moved into the nursery, then I will really go into "getting ready" mode.   And things around here will finally start to look like we're actually having a baby.  :)  Instead of just chaotic, with things just not in their right place.  That's driving me crazy.  :)

We have another class this week, this time on breastfeeding.  I am planning to go that route, as long as everything goes well so I'm game to learn all I can now.

We had some maternity photos done with friends of ours in Wake Forest this weekend so I will probably post some of those when I get the CD from Elizabeth.  I've seen a handful of them and they look fantastic!  Elizabeth is so talented and we really had a good time with her & Matthew (and little Emily :) yesterday.

We have a big baby shower this coming Saturday.  My mom & dad, and brother & sister-in-law (and my niece :) are coming for it.  It's being thrown by our sweet, sweet Sunday school class and we're pretty excited about it.  We haven't been told much, which is fine with me -- I love surprises! -- but I've heard enough to know that everyone has put a lot of planning & effort into it.  We are so blessed...