So here we are...18 out of 40. Almost 1/2 way there.

While we're counting down I'll also mention that we are ONLY 5 days away from the "big" ultrasound! Jon and I won't be finding out the sex of the baby until Thursday evening...at a gender reveal party. Sarah, my lil' sis, will be the only one who knows beforehand...she then has about 6 hours to put together the gender surprise. Pink or Blue? We'll all come dressed in the color we think the baby is...wish I could tell you more but everything is a big surprise including the party details. I've been begging for details, but unfortunately they are not forthcoming. If you check back in a few days I'll give you details including the gender!

This week I'm really showing, if a stranger on the sidewalk was questioning if I was pregnant or not last week, this week it's a fo' shizzle! I have also avoided the scale like a plague, so can't update you there...eating seems to have leveled out...although the last 2 days I've really been enjoying the taste of chocolate. I'm not normally a chocolate eater, but man were those m&m's and chocolate bar delicious! Jon bought me a bag of rolo's the other day...can't wait to sink my teeth into those deliciously filled carmel plops of chocolate! Self control though, right?

So the big question - how big is baby? Well, week 18 the little one grew to the size of a bell pepper. Her/his bones are getting stronger, which is why I've been detecting SO much movement this week. For a while there I thought the baby never slept - then I read in my preggo book that they only start sleeping from week 19 onwards. Weird. So perhaps this coming week I'll go for a few hours with no movement. Another amazing detail? The baby's heart is building muscle and started pumping 25 to 30 quarts of blood a day!

On another note - sorry my week 18 post rolled into what is now week 19...but this just means the next post will be all the sooner :)

Also, a special Thank You to Jon's aunt, Linda Jo for the special baby package that arrived in the mail this week! It's always exciting to see a package sitting on the front porch, especially when you don't know the contents :)

Have a good weekend - and we'll see you, same place, in a few days!