36 Weeks

And we're rounding second base, with home plate in sight...just a little over two more weeks to go til the big induction date! Doctor says either the baby is small or I "hide it well"--though she said that the last time, too, and we all remember that Eamon weighed over nine pounds! I am not really concerned with the baby's weight this time around, I know it'll be tough no matter what the size. All I am focused on is having a healthy, thriving little one!

And speaking of thriving, I've noticed the strangest thing happening over the past few days: I can actually see the baby "breathing"! It's literally the movement of a back rising and falling underneath my skin. The other day the movements were so definite that it was although I was holding the baby on the outside instead of in (he or she also had a case of the hiccups at the same time, which were occuring at a different rate than the breaths). This never happened with Eamon, but Leezie told me that they do "practice" breathing in utero and my doctor confirmed this. It's pretty rare, but one of the most amazing occurances I've experienced throughout these past 9 months!