Week 18 begins tomorrow, and all of the sudden, baby is very, very real.

I was sitting on the couch today, and felt baby kick me! This is the first time I’ve felt movement without having my hand pressed down on my womb, so the shock of it left me stunned; I called Chris to tell him, then I called my mom. And now all day, I’ve had a hand resting on my abdomen, waiting to feel more kicks and punches… which I did feel. It’s just amazing. A little over a week ago, we heard baby’s heartbeat — the most stunning thing about that was looking over at Chris to see how amazed he was, and hearing him say, “Oh, there is a baby in there after all!”

Baby… is so real now. Up until today, I’ve been aching for baby to be here; now, I just want the next five and a half months to creep by, so I can enjoy these feelings for as long as possible. I want to be an “expectant mom”, thrilled over every movement and waking up every morning to stand in front of the mirror and check out the profile of my baby bump.

I love this little bugger so much already.