Week 15 and Growing Things

At this moment I'm in a state of being that would have been highly unlikely at this time a week or more ago: awake. I've been told that more energy is one of the much-anticipated hallmarks of the second trimester. That's not to say that I don't feel like I could fall asleep this very moment , but I haven't seen 10:30pm in weeks and I'm not going to let it slip past me tonight.

When you work 40 hours a week, Monday to Friday, you always move from weekend to weekend. Being pregnant adds another type of week to the calendar - a developmental one. I look forward to getting my weekly pregnancy e-mail, comparing my baby's size to a piece of produce (baby has moved from pea to blueberry to grape to fig and so on. Now we're up to size apple) and telling me that some necessary organ has developed or some new body function is now up and running. One of the most interesting highlights for me this week was this (courtesy of babycenter.com):

Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam.

I know it's the miracle of life and it is amazing, but tell me that doesn't sound alien-like. I am grateful for all that is going on inside of me, but for some reason I can't shake the image of Signourney Weaver's Alien when thinking about or discussing my baby. Is that as wrong and I feel that it is?

There are also other exciting things growing outside of my stomach but inside our house: our garden seedlings! I'm amazed at how quickly they sprouted up and, for some of them, that they sprouted at all. The tallest seedlings with the big leaves are green beans. One of the many new additions to our garden this year. I'm hopeful that without the squash that strangled out the rest of our garden last year, these little guys will have a fighting chance.

Here's this week's belly shot: