Pregnancy is bizarre.

The bigger my belly gets, the more bizarre the whole thing feels. I often look down at my stomach and think, "Oh my gosh! I'm pregnant!". (Sam thinks this is very odd.) I don't think a guy can understand how strange it is to watch your own body transform into something totally different. I realized today that my hip bones have pretty much disappeared. After all the work I have put into keeping my abdomen flat and toned, it is strange and a tiny bit sad to watch all that disappear. Of course, I also love looking down and remembering that I really am pregnant. It's not in my imagination and there really is a baby growing in there.

In the past two weeks multiple random strangers have responded with some version of, "you don't even look pregnant!" when I tell them how far along I am. This is so bizarre to me, because I barely recognize my abdomen and I can't believe that this large bulge isn't noticeable to other people. I think it's supposed to be a compliment, but I want to look pregnant (not just like I have a big belly), so I don't really appreciate people telling me I don't. I've heard stories from many friends who have been pregnant about people saying they look huge or ready to pop. My mom said people always told her she looked too small for how pregnant she was. It's strange how either way, random strangers feel the need to tell you what they think about your belly. It's really a bizarre concept. What exactly does 21 weeks pregnant look like? How do random strangers know definitively what you are supposed to look like at a certain point? Apparently there is a secret standard among strangers as to how exactly your belly should look. I'm not sure what this standard is, because people always seem to mention that you either look small or big. Has anyone ever had a stranger come up to you and say that you look perfect for how far along you are? Maybe there are some nice strangers out there and I just haven't come across them yet. My friends and family on the other hand, have been wonderful about making me feel perfect. I really appreciate this! It's just those strangers I have to watch out for.

Another super bizarre thing about pregnancy is the little person moving inside of me. I still can't get over how strange it is to watch my belly move around on it's own. I often sit and read my bible after I get out of the shower and Joel consistently moves around a lot during this time. Every time, I get distracted from reading and just stare at my belly until it moves again. God sure did choose a bizarre way to bring new little humans into the world. It's amazing and miraculous and such a gift, but incredibly odd. After being pregnant, I'm not sure how anyone could say that there is no Creator. Why in the world would humans be formed this way if there wasn't a Creator with intelligence and maybe a slight sense of humor? No random collection of molecules could come up with this!

I have so many other friends who are going through this same bizarre process, which makes it so much more fun! I'm so excited for all the little friends Joel will have! I am convinced that this is the most fun time of life ever. My life becomes that much more exciting with every friend who joins me on this journey. I'm thankful to be experiencing this miraculous gift, bizarre as it may be.