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your week by week pregnancy guide
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1st Trimester - Week 1 To Week 14
 The first week of pregnancy is when you are not pregnant. Doctors calculate your pregnancy from the first day of your last period. Your egg and the sperm unite for fertilization towards the end of the second week. The third week starts and your body is still ignorant of the fertilization. It is only when the egg gets implanted in the uterus that your body realizes what’s happening and then starts a series of hormonal changes making you feel something’s wrong. This happens in the 4th and 5th week. Morning sickness appears.
Week 5 to 14 is a busy time, as there is a rapid development of the embryo from a bunch of cells to a baby with distinct identity.
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Week
1-2
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This is actually before you get pregnant. It's the stage where your body prepares itself by ovulating. And it's in these 14 days that the egg is fertilized by the sperm. Lead a healthy lifestyle just prior to conception - this is vital to having a healthy child. By week 2 you may actually be pregnant already, if ovulation has taken place in you! |
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Week
3
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The fertilized egg now moves down the fallopian tubes, fluid passes into the ball of cells, dividing them into two. The inner cells will form your baby and the outer cells will form the placenta. Your body, at this stage, is still unaware that it is pregnant. The tiny zygote tries to implant itself in your endometrial lining. You may experience some light implantation bleeding now. The implantation begins as the cell ball reaches the wall of the uterus. In this process the cells actually bury into the uterus wall, which can sometimes lead to you having spotting. The implanted cell ball now becomes an embryo. |
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Week
4
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This is a week of rapid development, and your body now realises it is pregnant. The amniotic sac and cavity begin to develop and also the Yoke sac appears (this will later form the baby's digestive system). The placenta now starts to form where implantation took place and blood from you will now go into the placenta. It is usually about day 27 that we start to feel the morning sickness. Do you think you are pregnant? A urine test can confirm it by now. |
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Week
5
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The primitive streak (the fore runner of the brain and spinal cord) is now developing. Through this primitive streak the cells will develop into three layers:
The endoderm: the bottom layer - develops the glands, lung linings, tongue, bladder, digestive tract, tonsils, urethra and associated glands.
Baby's heartbeat starts off as early as this week!
The mesoderm: the middle layer - forms the muscles, bones, heart, lungs, spleen, blood cells, and the reproductive and excretory systems.
The ectoderm: the top layer - forming the skin, nails, hair, eye lens, nose, mouth, anus, tooth enamel, pituitary gland, mammary glands, and all parts of the nervous system.
Other cells will be starting to develop the spine (called the notochord). The first steps towards forming the embryos head, and the first formation of the babies blood cells happen this week. |
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Week
6
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The first few days of this week is when your baby's heart starts beating. He or she is starting to develop - her little heart bulges outward from her chest. The aorta (the largest artery in the whole body) will be starting to form at around day 40. By mid week many organs are starting to form: eyes, arm buds, liver, gall bladder, stomach and intestines, lungs and pancreas. |
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Week
7
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This is a busy week for your growing baby. During this week your baby will double in size. The lenses of the eyes are developing and there is also a recognisable tongue. The legs and arms are developing into paddles, the jaws are now visible. Hand plates and nasal pits start forming now. |
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Week
8
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The cerebellum starts to form this week. That's the part of the brain responsible for the movement of muscles. Also hand and foot plates, elbow and wrist areas are forming. Towards the end of the eight week the hand plate has formed ridges where the fingers will be. There is further development of the eye; pigment is now appearing on the retina. Teeth buds are now forming within the gums, along with the wind pipe, bronchi, and voice box. The heart is now starting to develop the four chambers. Baby's bones and internal genitalia start developing now. |
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Week
9
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Your baby is now starting to form cartilage and bones. During this week the ovaries will have developed into the sex organ determining whether you're having a boy or a girl. The fingers and thumbs are now taking shape. Also the baby is now becoming more active. Little toe rays start forming now! |
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Week
10
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It's now that your embryo has become a baby, all be it on a rather small scale. There is a fully formed upper lip. The development of the heart now slows as it is past the critical stage. By mid week the earlobes are fully formed. Toes start to develop on the foot plate. As the bones of the palate (roof of the mouth) start to fuse together, the tongue starts to develop taste buds. |
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Week
11
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As the morning sickness starts to subside, you may feel your appetite increase. Your baby's body starts to straighten. In males the penis is now distinguishable and in females the vagina is beginning to develop. This stage is where the baby starts to show individuality, as the muscle structure varies in each baby. |
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Week
12
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Your baby will start to develop fingernails over the next three weeks. The brain is now the same structure as it will be at birth. By the end of the week, the gall bladder and pancreas will be fully developed. Also the baby will now be opening and closing its mouth. You can hear the heartbeat with ultrasound! |
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Week
13
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This week vocal chords will form in the larynx. Also the intestines will move from the umbilical cord into the abdomen, and will start to form folds and become lined with villi. Teeth buds start forming, so does the intestinal tract. |
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Week
14
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You may have noticed some changes to the areola (the area around your nipple); it may be getting larger and darker. Your baby's heart beat will now be able to be heard using a Doppler. Breathing, sucking and swallowing motions will be being practised. The breathing practises will take the amniotic fluid in and out of the lungs. Baby's hand also becomes more functional. Baby now urinates into the amniotic fluid. |
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2nd Trimester - Week 15 To Week 26
 This trimester is full of changes and development in the baby. So, continue to keep a check on your pregnancy week by week. Your baby's ears, eyes, and other facial features become distinct. She has tiny limbs. All her organs are on the verge of development. Her heart has started pumping too. By the 18th week, your baby's fingerprints begin to develop.
By the 19th week, if the baby is a girl, her egg cells start to develop in her ovaries. Your baby has hair all over her body and she begins to sleep and wake up. By the 21st week, the doctor can hear your baby's heartbeats with the help of a stethoscope. And by the 24th week, your doctor can hear the heartbeats without stethoscope by putting her ear on your belly. By the 25th week, your baby's brain starts working.
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Week
15
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The baby's neck is now defined, with the head now resting on the neck rather than the shoulders. The hair pattern of the baby will be defined by the 102nd day of the pregnancy your baby will now be able to turn its head, open its mouth, kick, press its lips together and turn its feet. Some babies actually start sucking their thumb at this point! |
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Week
16
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This week the baby's toe nails will start to grow. The muscles will be growing stronger and the neck and head are growing straighter. As the uterus starts moving upwards you may start showing more, but this does mean less pressure on your bladder, making you feel like urinating less. Movements of limbs are co-ordinated. |
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Week
17
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Your baby will be working on more reflexes this week; blinking, sucking, and swallowing. Development is carrying on with all the existing structures. External ears develop nicely. Through the course of this month your baby's weight will increase 6 times. |
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Week
18
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By mid week your baby's eyes and ears will now be in the right places. The finger tips and toes will develop pads, and toe and finger prints will start to develop later in the week. Myelinization, a process of coating the nerves with a fatty substance called myelin which speeds up nerve cell transmission and insulates nerves, will start happening this week. Also by the second day of this week meconium (faecal waste) will start developing in the baby's bowels. |
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Week
19
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A creamy looking substance that covers the baby's body, vernix coseosa, will start to form. This protects the baby and its developing glands and sensory cells. Fine hairs grow all over baby's tiny body If you're having a baby girl primitive egg cells are now developed in the ovaries, in fact females are born with all the eggs their ovaries will ever have. |
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Week
20
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Most of the major development has now taken place, and the danger zone of the first three months is now over. Your baby will be waking and sleeping, just as newborns do. Also the formation of fine scalp hair and eyebrows will begin. Oh and of course!! you will get a good enough image of your baby inside, with ultrasound! Isn't that really exciting?! |
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Week
21
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Your body is replacing the amniotic fluid very three hours at this stage of your pregnancy. Baby's leg and arm movements increase as the muscles and bones become stronger. By the end of the week a stethoscope will be able to detect the baby's heart beat.
Most babies move into the head-down position at this time. |
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Week 22 |
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If the baby is a boy, the testes will start to move from the pelvic area into the scrotum. The hair on the head and eyebrows is now visible as white and short. Baby gets nice, shapely eyebrows now. Can you beat that?! And look at you - you have to take so many trips to the parlor to attain the same! |
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Week
23
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The bones in the middle ear start hardening making the conduction of sound possible. The baby will start to gain some considerable weight between now and next month. The size of the baby's body will start to get into proportion though the head will remain larger than the rest of the body. |
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Week
24
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Baby is growing really rapidly and is almost fully developed now. The skin of your baby is wrinkled, but will smooth out as fat is deposited. Also by the end of this week the baby's heart beat is so strong it is some times possible to hear it by placing an ear on your stomach. |
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Week
25
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Baby's skin is now turning a reddish/pink as capillaries start to develop. The nostrils will now start to open, as they have been plugged unto now. The lungs will start developing blood vessels and the finger and toe nails will now be covering half the nail bed. Baby actually weighs about 1 pound and 9 ounces. |
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Week
26
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With the nostrils now open, muscular breathing will start. By the end of the week the lungs will be secreting surfactant, a substance which prevents the lung tissue sticking together. Also with the formation of blood vessels in the lungs, they will now also be developing air sacks. Brain wave activity starts this week for auditory and visual activity. Baby has been exposed to her internal sights and sounds up until now. But from now on, she actually reacts to external lights and sounds as well. You may feel her jumping at a sudden, loud sound right now. |
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3rd Trimester Week 27 To Week 40
 By this time, you will start feeling the kicks of your baby. By the 29th week, your baby has her senses working and her lungs are able to breathe air. By the 32nd week, your baby can see, hear, smell, feel, and taste. She will change her position and her head will slide down in the next three weeks. By the 37th week, you should be prepared for signs of labor.
As you continue to keep a tab on your pregnancy week by week and enter the 40th week, the wait for your baby starts. Be ready; she can arrive any time!
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Week
27
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Bumping and thumping is becoming stronger as your baby grows stronger, you should be feeling around 10 kicks in a two hour period. Baby's lungs are growing rapidly and there is continual development with brain patterns.
Your little angel's skin is quite transparent at this moment and veins stand out very clearly. |
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Week
28
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This is when the eyelids un-fuse and open up. Muscle tone is improving, and the lungs are capable of breathing air. The chances of a baby being born premature from now on, has a greatly improved chance of surviving. |
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Week
29
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Eye lashes have now grown, and although still unable to focus, baby's eyes are now sensitive to dark and light. At this stage of pregnancy the senses of sound, smell and taste are developing. By the end of the week your baby will be able to move its eyes in their sockets. |
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Week
30
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Baby is now storing up nutrients taken in by you. Calcium for skeletal development, protein for growth and iron for blood cells. By the end of the week the languno (the small hairs that covered the baby's body), is nearly all gone apart from some patches on the shoulders and back. |
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Week
31
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As the actual growth starts to slow down, the internal organs are still maturing, so make sure your still getting enough folic acid, iron and calcium. Should your baby be born this week they would have the ability to breath, see, listen learn and remember. Now baby's beautiful little eyes respond to light and irises adapt to the changes in lighting conditions. |
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Week
32
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The baby's iris is now reacting to light. All five senses are now registering with your baby, although smell is limited as baby can't breathe air in the uterus. |
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Week
33
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Your baby may now be sucking its fingers. Constipation could be starting for you as your uterus puts more and more pressure on your bowels.
Baby's tiny lungs expand enough to be able to function on their own. |
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Week
34
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The pigment of the eyes is not quite fully developed yet, this leaves the eyes looking blue regardless of final colour. And this week your baby will start to develop its own immune system. |
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Week
35
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In baby boys the decent of the testes will complete any time now. Your baby may now shift into your pelvis in a head down position, but not all babies' do this before birth. |
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Week
36
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Dimples on the elbows and knees will be forming as well as creases in the neck area due to continual deposits of fat. Also this fat will help baby maintain its body temperature. |
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Week
37
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Around 85% are born within two weeks of their actual due date (either before or after), so as you enter this stage be aware for signs of labour. The baby is practising being more aware of its surroundings; this is the 'orientating response'. This is where the baby will turn towards any source of light. The end of this week marks the end of development, growth will now slow down. Baby actually practices breathing exercises while still inside you. |
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Week
38
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Meconium is accumulating in the intestines. Meconium is a dark green mass of waste product and cells from the gall bladder, liver and pancreas. Although shortly after birth this will all come out. Baby is feeling just like you and is now struggles to remain patient and stay put in her little nest! |
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Week
39
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As the baby is settling into your pelvis, you maybe feeling clumsy and off balance. This is because your centre of gravity shifts. Make sure you're prepared for your trip to the hospital. |
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Week 40 - You have finally made it!!!
welcome to the final week, that's if you have not given birth already.
Your body will be giving the baby antibodies so it can protect itself from many diseases.
The baby will finish dropping into its resting place before birth.
So congratulations from Butterfly Babies and welcome to your new born child.
There is no greater Blessing!
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Week by Week Pregnancy Guide
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