As of today: 184 days (65.7%) through the pregnancy… 96 days (13.5 weeks) to go!
The Baby:
*His network of nerves in his ears are better developed and more sensitive – he may be able to hear Steve and I talking to each other now!
*Sound passes easily through the uterus, allowing his ears to become more sensitive to noise
*His testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum (takes 2 to 3 days)
*His eyes are almost fully formed
*Weighs 1 2/3 to 2 pounds
*About 14 inches long = the size of an “English hothouse cucumber” (what is that?! see below)
*Alveoli (air sacs in the lungs) are now developed and will soon start to secrete surfactant
*Patterns of brain waves now resemble that of a full-term newborn
It looks so big (long)! But he’s all curled up in the womb…
The Mom:
*My growing uterus is shifting my center of gravity, stretching and weakening my ab muscles, and may be pressing on a nerve.
*Plus, hormones cause my joints and ligaments to loosen and the extra weight means more work for my muscles and stress on my joints.
*Sounds fun, right? It’s really not that bad. Thanks to my body pillow and wedge! And my hubby, who helps me get up 
*Symptoms: still just dealing with heartburn, an achy back and fatigue. Otherwise we’re all good!
*Weight: I know it’s going up! I don’t have a digital scale, but I’d guess it’s up 3 pounds since my last doctor visit? About a pound a week, right on track
The Dad:
*He heard the heartbeat! He can’t always (guess it depends on the location of the baby), but he rested his head on my belly and heard the heart. I’m jealous 
*We are going back and forth on a couple names for the lil boy. We’re trying to compromise (by giving rights to naming the next kid, haha). I have a feeling we’ll go right up to the due date before being decisive!
*We spent nearly 3 hours at Babies R Us today and it was just to update our registry! Exhausting! And we still need to go to Target… but that trip will be much easier (and shorter). We have a ton of stuff on our registry and we don’t expect most of it, but once baby is born we’ll get a discount on everything that’s left – whoohoo!
Did you know Babies R Us has special parking up front for preggos?!
woop woop! over halfway there!!! and I love the reference to random vegetables.
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erdickey Reply:
September 13th, 2009 at 9:28 pm
lol I know.. they really couldn’t come up with something better??
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Can I listen to the heartbeat, Emily?
:0
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cute pic, by the way!!!
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I wish every place had stork parking!!!
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erdickey Reply:
September 13th, 2009 at 9:30 pm
Haha, me too! My friend told me they have them at the Target in Wyoming where she lives… maybe the idea is spreading!? lol
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Just stumbled across your blog via TwitterMoms. Congratulations! My first baby was born in December as well. When I was at the point in my pregnancy that you are in, I started regularly singing lullabyes to my baby, hoping she would recognize my voice as well as the tunes when she finally came into the world. I’m just sure it worked!
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I’ve been following your blog for a while now and just wanted to let you know I enjoy it! I’m almost 14 weeks along in my own first pregnancy, so it’s nice to read about what’s ahead. Sounds like things are continuing to go well for you, which is great. I hope that continues! I started blogging about my baby adventure, too. So far I’ve just shared it with friends and family, but feel free to read it if you’d like – http://payettestork.wordpress.com.
Cheers,
Laura
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I just found your blog and I like it. It’s informative but fun, too. Congrats on reaching 26 weeks. Looks like everything is moving along right on schedule. Terrific!
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