20 weeks

We are now 1/2 way through the pregnancy, so crazy!

She is starting to peak out in normal clothes much more often. It is funny to me that some of my regular shirts are already too short to wear. I am attempting to use the belly band and try the unbutton your jeans look, not quite sure how that is going. The material just seems so thin that you can still see the outline of my button popping through some of the clothes.

In other news, we bought a crib....horray! We searched all weekend and bought one Sunday. Matt set it up while we watched the super bowl. We were applauding ourselves for multitasking until we realized the crib would not fit through the bedroom door. Brilliant. So we took it back out to the family room, took it apart, brought it back to the bedroom and set it up again.

 Driving off with the crib in tow. High fives all around

I also grabbed a picture of the mini dresser we got at the thrift store last week. My parents brought it up when they stopped by this weekend.

It ended up matching the fabric really well. I was so happy with it.

My parents came by to get measurements of the room and closet. My dad wants to build us some shelving in the closet, bookshelves for the wall and a box to put around the top of her window. We are so blessed by how crafty they are. They have always been into giving projects as presents and we gladly welcome all their help. My mom is going to get Amanda's opinion on the color for her room and then get to work painting away. Right now they are thinking some sort of cream with a little yellow since we have so many bold fabrics to bring color to the space. I am terrible at picking paint swatches so I am trusting their choices.

I go back to work tonight to start my three in a row. Work has been so much better lately. I am feeling normal, most everyone has found out and people are starting to be able to see her little bump. It is surreal to think in 3 weeks, she will be the size of some babies I have taken care of in the NICU. In 3 weeks...well 4 if we are not being too crazy, she could survive outside of me. Granted it would be with much help, many hurdles to climb and nothing we would wish for but it is still unbelievable I have held a child that size. She is becoming more tangible as a baby and less like a bunch of cells. It is amazing what God is creating right now inside of me. The systems and inner workings of her little body that will support her for the rest of her life are forming at a rapid pace. When I reflect on that, it makes me want to pray all the more for her health and safety as she develops. It also makes the babies I work with seem like more of mini miracles. Many of them should still be developing inside their moms in a safe, quiet, dark, protected environment and instead are thrown into our chaotic world and forced to finish up out here. It is amazing how resilient they are. I feel God's presence at my work all the time, watching over these babies just as he would if they were still being knit together in their mother's womb. I love that about my job. So I am ready to go back tonight, well rested and excited to see how God will use me to impact their lives today.