19 weeks down ... Only 21 weeks to go!

One more week until we hit the halfway point! Isn't that crazy? According to my books, Lima Bean is 6 inches long and weighs a half a pound! Wow! And all the books seem to agree that he or she is now the size of a large mango. See picture below.

So what's going on with Lima Bean? Well, as I noted last week, teeth buds are forming and hair is sprouting. 

And Lima Bean can now recognize my voice, and we hope Papa Bean's voice too! But we watch so much American Idol that I'm worried Bean might think Papa Bean can sing. We are crossing our fingers that the vocal limitations of either of us will not pass to Bean and somehow, some way we'll end up with a singing baby!

Also this week, Lima Bean can now have a bowel movement. If Bean's a boy, he will forever talk about such movements and their greatness. If Bean's a girl, she will be happy to be regular. Luckily, all this baby poo, called "meconium," won't come out until after birth. We. Can't. Wait. Ugh.

Finally, Lima Bean is now covered in a waxy protective coating called the "vernix caseosa," which protects his or her skin from the amniotic fluid. Without this protection, Bean would come out all wrinkly. Just imagine soaking in a bath tub for 4 months and imagine how wrinkled your skin would be!

The picture above left is how things should be looking about now.