Baby Stockton #2 Countdown - Week 25, 15 to Go!

Just 15 weeks left. Almost down to single digits in the weeks. Still doesn't feel real. But as of week 25, here is the update:

For those who haven't tuned in for the past 3 weeks, we had our ultrasound on December 2nd, and.... drum roll...

IT'S A BOY!

That's right. We've got an all-American male growing inside me, and he is an active little bugger. Richard Vaughn Stockton. We'll be calling him Richie.

My boy’s physical proportions are evening out at this point and most of his remaining development will largely be weight gain and lots and lots of nervous system development. Oh joy! More gaining weight. I'm so thrilled. :)

The good news is: if for some reason, my boy is born premature, at this point, he’ll be more likely to survive without too much trauma as his lungs began to produce “surfactant” last week, which means his tiny respiratory system is getting stronger with each passing day. Now’s a good time for a minor sigh of relief and a quick pat on the back. All that hard work and conscientious living is really getting my son prepared for a healthy delivery.

This week he’ll be scootching slowly out of the old breech position and start rotating (already!) into a better position for exit during his birth. His head and feet are slowly rotating so that his head is pointed down toward the birth canal. Time is short (or really long, depending on who you ask)—just (still!) 15 weeks left before I can go back to being a single-resident human. And if you talk to my sister-in-law, she'd say time is LONG! She was due with her boy on Dec. 19th, but baby Michael still hasn't decided to join the air-breathing population just yet. We're all praying for one day this week. That gal is ready to bust!

And now for some words from the wiggle-worm inside me:

Well, I've been enjoying hearing all the muffled sounds on the outside. There's some high-pitched shrieking that I think is coming from something called a "sister." I don't know what that is, but I have a regretful feeling I'll be finding out real soon. If that sister is responsible for all that thumping and pounding on my mommy's tummy, waking me up and disrupting my comfort zone, I might just have to teach her who's boss!

At least it's not all the time, and I have my mommy's voice to soothe me, her warm hand to comfort me, and the methodic rocking of her movements to lull me back to sleep. Oh yeah, and I've given some good healthy kicks to the person my mommy calls "daddy." It sounds like mommy, so he must be just as important. There's so many strange things out there. I look forward to seeing it all for myself. But for now, I'll enjoy this warm, snug, and safe cocoon where I currently live.

Me again. The mama. :) That's it for now. Tune in each week for the latest. And if you want to receive an email each time I post an update, subscribe using the form over there at the top right.

Thanks for coming along this journey with me...some of you for the second time.