outside longer than inside....

i was pregnant for 34 weeks.

and today, isaac turns 37 weeks old.

he's technically been outside of my belly, longer than he was inside.

and that utterly blows my mind.

(if you think about it, had he been born full-term, he'd still be "inside longer than outside," which is equally incredible. a true reminder as to HOW LONG pregnancy really is. you're pregnant for a lonnnnnng time....)

i cannot believe how much i love him.

when he was 1 week old (still in the NICU), i loved him deeply. i loved him because he was apart of me. because he had been so worried over. because he was HERE. because he was an answer to prayer...

but i quickly learned that love grows in layers.
that was the base layer.

with each week that goes by...love abounds for reasons that were unexpected.
i love the way his face blows up with excitement when i open his car door to let him out of his car seat.

i love the way he paws at his books and squeals.

i love the way he will only fall asleep peacefully on daddy's lap.

i love his newfound independence...the way he plays with his toys and is obsessed with the wheels under the pack and play. even though each week that goes by, brings less and less reliance on me. he'll grow up one day and be completely free of his mommy-dependence one day, right before my very eyes.

each week i learn something more about his personality...about what he likes and hates.
and the love i contain for him at 37 weeks really does blow the love i had for him at week #1, out of the water.

happy 37 weeks, baby boy.

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PS: these 37 weeks were wayyy cooler than the first 34 weeks. being inside was no fun for either party...so...we never hold your early entrance against you. :)