Yep, I'm in here...

You knew it already, of course. My first step was to get the ball rolling on the milk-making machinery, and I know you noticed some swelling almost right away. What can I say, food is a priority! Then I just had to increase the sensitivity on K's odor detector as a precautionary measure - though I did notice it was rather finely tuned to begin with, particularly in the banana department! I'm looking forward to giving one of those a try to see if they're really as detestable as she tells me. You noticed a few other signs too, of course. I wanted to announce my coming, but subtly, because one just doesn't spring big news like that on a person without a little warning! I made sure that by the time you took that test and saw the plus sign, you were prepared to absorb the knowledge. In fact, at that point, it felt good just to have the satisfaction of knowing that you were Right, didn't it? Not to mention that of course you were overjoyed to learn of my presence. Please don't think me self-centered - it's just that I know how these things work.

It was hard holding that secret in though, wasn't it? There's some fun in holding in a secret (I should know, I'm still holding on to many of mine) - but it also feels great to share. I'm happy the grandparents were so pleased. As you know, it was harder for them to hold on to the secret than it was for me or for you, K or i. I'm busy growing here, and you've got a lot of other things happening to distract you, but they're out there in the world seeing friends and family who ask them things like "what's new?" and "do you think you might have any more grandchildren soon?" and "how's life?" and what are they supposed to say to these people?! You really can't blame them for being a little overly eager to spread the news.

K, I know the last few weeks have been a little rough, as I've had to send you some pretty strong signals regarding food intake. There are just some tastes and smells that I can't bear to let in. Remember how you feel about bananas? Yeah, I think it's something like that. Maybe the tastes are transformed by the time they make it through to me. Whatever you used to see in fried chicken is beyond me. Ugh! Horrible stuff. Anyhow, I'm working toward aligning my tastes with yours, and once I've completed that process you should be free to consume what you choose.

I hope you're enjoying the extra sleepy hours now while you can. I know it will take some time for me to adjust to the outside world, and I'm afraid it's going to mean less sleep for both of us. You too, i. Let's all appreciate this relatively restful time while we can.

Last weekend in Vancouver was so much fun! You shared our secret with your friends and with the rest of the family - I'm looking forward to meeting them all once I'm on the outside (it's such a frightening concept still, but I am learning that there will be some benefits too).

Of course as soon as you let the big secret out, everyone had many more questions for me. I really can't believe that you thought there might have been two of us in here.  Do you have any idea how tight my living space is already? I'm not complaining - it's lovely - but I'm just saying that it would have been a little too cozy, even for me. Sometimes I just can't keep all my secrets in either. I was so relieved that your ultrasound was scheduled on Friday so I could show myself and some of my moves. Did you catch that great shot of my hand with all my fingers on it? I think they're coming along rather nicely. Oma, I totally agree with you - I don't have frog legs! I'm working pretty hard in here to develop into a human. Sometimes people say strange things about me though. Remember when they were comparing me to a blueberry?! I didn't look a thing like one: not then, and not ever!

i, I really wish you could have been there too. I knew they needed me to roll over to take their measurements, and I thought about refusing just so that there could be another one for you to see, but I didn't want to give everyone the wrong impression about me. It's in my nature to be cooperative, you see - I don't want any trouble. You'll have a chance to see me wriggle around in here not so many weeks from now. I might even let you hear my heart beat - 156bpm! - just make sure you're home in time for Monday's appointment with the midwife.

Yawn. Ok, K - remember what I said about appreciating sleep now? It's time. zzzzzz..