Week 32 - Moving Soon...

Hey there everybody! Welcome to week 32. Or as I call it, "three and two". Don't judge me - that's a big number. And big numbers at THIS point means that my little brother is getting close to making his grand entrance. Time to start "talkin' baby"!

At this point everything is just about done developing on the little guy. I heard from the doctor that his lungs are "nearly mature", which I can only imagine that means that his lungs are telling some off-color jokes and displaying somewhat poor manners. Hey wait a second, why didn't they just say his lungs are "like daddy"? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA (Sorry, I crack myself up sometimes) A few other systems are "like daddy" at this point too. His digestive tract is almost fully developed and his immune system is getting stronger by the day. He doesn't have to rely on mommy's immune system as much, but that's something that will continue to strengthen after he's born.

And speaking of birth, he's doing the "baby compass" move right now. He's finalizing his baby rotation and is now pointing "due south". Don't get me wrong, he may flip around every once in a while but he always settles back into that head-down orientation just waiting for his cue! This also helps him get a little more legroom in there. After all, you can only push mommy so far SIDEWAYS, but when he points south he's got more legroom AND more things to kick. Ribs, diaphragm, bladder, you name it! Sadly, that's as mobile as he will be until he is born. Its all downhill from here as far as legroom. That's okay though because with all of this growth, he ends up sleeping most of the time anyways.  And yes, his bones are still nice and pliable, that's a big deal. He'll need to be flexible like Gumby and Stretch Armstrong combined!

Oh yeah, I forgot to give you some numbers didn't I? Right now baby brother is about 17" tall and weighs in at about 4lbs.  Between now and the time he's born, his weight should DOUBLE! That's pretty damn impressive. Try doubling YOUR body weight in 8 weeks. Even with an I.V. from Five Guys you couldn't get that done! And the funny part is that with all of this weight gain, he's not looking so wrinkly anymore. Or as I call it "link-a-lee". (I like the way I say it better) All of those extra pounds are filling his body out, so he looks less like a raisin.

At this point, he could be born and have a 90% chance of survival. Naturally we all know that as tough as he is, its more like 100% but we will go with what the "experts" say on this one. I say he's tough because he punches and kicks mommy ALL the time. I don't even think that I hit her this much, and I was practically giving her the Ike Turner treatment in there so that's saying something. 

I'll admit, he's got my attention now. Somebody that is THIS active is going to be a hard one to handle. Then again, nobody said being a big brother was easy! Actually I think daddy might have said that but what does he know? Uncle Donny was the big brother! Maybe I should ask him how hard it is. I'm just assuming that I get to order him around and stuff, so what could possibly go wrong with that?

I've gotta get a list of stuff together for him to do for me. Let's see - he can pick up my toys, make me some mac 'n cheese, do my homework, distract daddy so I can get into some shenanigans, etc. I know it may seem a tad bit self-serving, but my list is WAY more interesting than the stuff he does on a daily basis. Right now all he does is hang out, look around the room, grab different things (and really how many different things are there to grab?), making faces, practicing breathing, peeing, and rooting. For the uninitiated, rooting is what you call it when little guys are looking for food from mommy. Baby Brother is practicing rolling his head around so that he can find the chow line once he's born. I mean, if he's lucky I might sneak a cheese sandwich to him when mommy isn't looking but he'll REALLY owe me for that!

Okay, the potty is calling. Don't forget to vote on the baby names of the week! Seeya next time.

Andrew Joiner, Big Brother