Fetal Development Week 24

You probably won't know whether your baby is floating upside down or right side up-but as of this week, he or she sure will! As the development of the inner ear becomes complete, this important component of the vestibular system enhances the baby's sense of movement and position. In addition, your rapidly growing fetus has gained four ounces since last week, and he's now about the length of an ear of corn. While your baby is in utero, he receives oxygen through your placenta, but you both know that won't always be the case. To prepare for the work of taking in oxygen once he's born, your baby's lungs are beginning to produce surfactant. Surfactant is a substance that keeps the air sacs in the lungs from collapsing or sticking together during breathing. In addition, your fetus's brain and taste buds are continuing to grow and develop during your 24th week. To see what's in store for your baby's continued development, check back next week for your newest video update!

Weeks 21 through 24 of your pregnancy bring some huge changes for your growing baby. He or she has probably broken the one-pound mark! By the end of month six, your baby will weigh up to a pound and a half and be approximately eight inches long, the size of a standard letter. Have you ever wondered how your baby eats? Believe it or not, he or she is swallowing several ounces of amniotic fluid each day, an exercise that helps the digestive system mature and provides practice for life post-womb. The taste of your amniotic fluid differs based on what you've eaten, and research has shown that babies who are exposed to certain foods in the womb are more likely to eat them later. See, it's never too early to get your little guy or gal to eat veggies! And speaking of eating, your baby may now get bouts of the hiccups! You might perceive them as a small repetitive and rhythmic movement that occurs for a few minutes at a time and then recedes, a common and harmless occurrence. Although your baby's eyes are still fused shut, he or she can perceive lightness and darkness now. Your little one is also developing a sense of touch. By the end of your sixth month, your baby's transparent, saggy skin will become less so, as your fetus gains weight from fat and growing organs, bones, and muscle. In fact, he or she will start gaining about three ounces a week! The most fun part of this month is that you'll probably be able to hear your baby's heartbeat through a plain old stethoscope (forget that Doppler!) While your baby grows, so do you...and your feet! That growth can be attributed to normal pregnancy swelling and many expectant moms find that their feet balloon up a full size...and stay that way post-birth. That's because relaxin, the hormone that loosens the ligaments in your pelvis, also loosens the ligaments in your feet. Pregnancy hormones may also cause some temporary skin discolorations. You may have noticed a dark line, or linea nigra, which runs between your belly button and pubic bone. Some women may also experience discoloration around the face, known as "the mask of pregnancy," or melasma. And you may have started to notice the literal marks your baby is leaving on your belly, buttocks, thighs, hips, and breasts...stretch marks! These reddish, purplish streaks are caused by tiny tears in the tissue under skin that has been stretched to its limit. More than half of women get stretch marks, and the tendency to do so is genetic. Take heart though: Stretch marks DO fade over time and should be worn as a badge of honor...40-weeks of pregnancy is no easy feat! You're almost done with your second trimester and your little one is getting bigger, and more ready to leave your belly and snuggle in your arms.

This week your fetus will begin to discover its sense of touch. Because your baby's brain and nerve endings are almost fully formed, he or she will begin experimenting with this newfound sense! As such, an ultrasound may show your baby stroking his face, sucking her thumb, or feeling other body parts. And now that your fetus has officially hit the one pound, 11-inch mark, he'll really start to look like a person this week. Of course, he's still covered with that downy coating of lanugo, and he also sports deep wrinkles of skin on his body. But don't worry: Before your fetus is ready to be born, he'll shed that fur and will also fill in the wrinkles with oh-so-pinchable baby fat! In other developments, a baby girl's vagina is almost fully formed now, while a boy's testes will begin to descend this week. And deep within your baby's belly, the pancreas continues to grow and get ready to produce vital hormones. Want to know more? Check back right here for your weekly fetal development update!

Can you believe that just a few weeks ago you could barely discern your baby's fluttering movements? By now, there's no doubt that you'll feel your little martial artist as he or she kicks, squirms, and somersaults in your belly. In fact, you'll be so attuned to your little one's movements that you'll know your fetus's sleep/wake schedules. This can be frustrating if they're different from your own, but just look at this as great practice for your baby's eventual arrival! The reason it's so easy to feel your fetus now is that your baby is much bigger. In fact, your little one weighs in at about one pound. And as your baby grows, he continues to prepare for the real world with ever keener senses. In particular, your fetus's hearing will allow him to discern loud, disruptive noises, like the dog barking or the vacuum cleaner. Exposure to these sounds in the womb will mean that your baby will unlikely be fazed by them once he arrives-which is good news for you! For more on your baby's impressive development, check back right here for your weekly video update.

Your fetus' body is continually developing. Here's what's happening this week! The placenta, which nourishes your fetus and also removes waste, is ever growing to accommodate your baby's needs. It now contains thousands of blood vessels, which bring life-giving oxygen and nutrients to your little one. Plus, the umbilical cord, which is your baby's lifeline to the placenta, is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby's umbilical cord contains two arteries and one vein surrounded by a white thick gel called Wharton's Jelly. Your fetus weighs about five ounces, and measures five inches now, making your little one the size of a sweet potato! Interestingly, your baby's bones have started to ossify, which means to change from what was previously soft cartilage to what will become hard bone. Some of the first bones to ossify are those in the clavicles and legs. Plus, your baby's sweat glands are forming now, and your little one's joints are now fully active and moving. To see what your fetus is up to next week, check back for a brand new video update!

You better start brushing up on your storytelling and song singing abilities this week, because your baby may be listening! Now that your baby's ears have moved to their final position on the head, the bones of the middle ear and auditory nerve endings from the brain are developing. This means that your fetus will probably be able to hear sounds like your heartbeat and blood rushing through the umbilical cord. At this point, your little one may even be startled by a sudden loud noise! And if you haven't yet done so, you'll probably start to feel those butterfly kicks of surprise, as well as some more strident jabs this week. From crown to rump, your ever-growing baby will measure about 5 inches long, and weigh seven ounces about the size of a bell pepper! In addition to ongoing brain development, a protective, insulating coat of myelin has begun to grow around your baby's nerves, a process that will continue through your baby's first year. This is why many pregnant women are advised to supplement with Omega-3 essential fatty acids so talk to your practitioner about what is right for you. For more on your little one's development, check back during your nineteenth week!

Your baby is experiencing some serious sensory action this week as the brain develops specialized areas for each of the five senses. Aside from the sensory explosion, your baby begins to grow a white, waxy skin coating this week. Called vernix caseosa, this coating ensures your fetus's delicate skin doesn't become scratched or pickled in its bed of amniotic fluid. If your baby arrives prematurely, he or she may still be coated with an entire layer of vernix, although most babies will shed much of this pre-birth. In addition, this week brings about the development of brown fat, which will help keep your fetus warm after birth. About now, your baby is the size of a large heirloom tomato, weighing about 8 1/2 ounces and measuring six inches. In other news, your little one is essentially proportional now, from the legs to the arms to the head. The organs are well-developed and become easier to view sonographically Your fetus's kidneys continue to make urine and the mini-lungs continue to "breathe" amniotic fluid. For more on your little one's developmental progress, get your weekly play by play right here.

Congratulations, mom-to-be! You're halfway through your pregnancy, and your baby continues to grow, grow, grow. At this point, you may notice that the top of your uterus, the fundus, is about level with your belly button. In baby news, your little one will be less bent over, so from now on we will measure size from head to toe, instead of from head to rump. And this week's head to toe measurement is about ten inches, or the LENGTH of a banana. Your baby is also about 10 to 11 ounces now! These days, your little one is swallowing more amniotic fluid, which is great practice for your fetus' developing digestive system. And your baby has also started producing meconium, a black, sticky, tar-like stool composed of materials ingested while in utero like mucus, amniotic fluid, bile and epithelial cells. Because it accumulates in the bowels, you'll notice meconium in your baby's first diaper, though your baby may even pass some during birth. Check back in next week to see what your busy baby has in store!

Week 25 is a period of continued growth for your baby. Your fetus will continue to make his or her presence known with kicks and jabs, which you may notice most at night. If your fetus is prone to sleeping the most during YOUR day, it's because the movements of your active body are soothing. Your baby's grown a full inch and a half since last week, and now measures in at about thirteen and a half inches. He's bigger too, and that pound and a half frame can be compared in size to a rutabaga. And while your baby has been covered with downy lanugo for some time, he'll start growing additional hair on that little head this week. To find out what week 26 brings, check back right here for your next video update!

As your delivery date draws ever closer, your baby will be focusing on getting nice and plump for the big day! Sure, your fetus still looks a bit wrinkly, but that booming baby is almost two full pounds by his 26th week, and should measure somewhere around 14-inches from crown to rump, which is about the size of an English hothouse cucumber. Your fetus continues to practice for life outside the womb, inhaling and exhaling small amounts of your amniotic fluid. That little heart keeps beating a strong rhythm, which you may be able to hear with just a basic stethoscope now. Plus, the nerve pathways in your baby's ears continue to develop, and you may notice that your baby frequently jumps at loud sounds. Interesting to note, the baby also responds to strong vibrations like the bass at rock concerts. If you're not already doing so, make a point to talk to your baby from here on out, and encourage your partner to follow suit. After all, your voices are one of the first things your little one will recognize outside the womb. Check back next week to see what your baby has in store for the start of your third trimester!

Welcome to the end of your second trimester-you're nearing home stretch in your 40-week pregnancy! By now, your baby looks very similar to the way he'll appear at birth, albeit thinner and smaller. And although your little one's lungs and immune system still need to fully mature, if your baby were to be born now, though not ideal, chances are that with special neo-natal care your little one would probably be OK. Of course, you want that baby to stay safe and warm inside you for a few more weeks! After all, your little one is only about 14.5 inches and a bit bigger than two pounds, rather like a head of cauliflower. And while your baby continues to grow inside you, your little one is probably sleeping and waking at regular intervals. You may notice occasional rhythmic movements in your belly during waking hours, which are just normal cases of baby hiccups. Although your fetus's eyes have been fused shut up to now, the retina, or light sensitive portion, has begun to mature. The result? Your baby's eyes will open in the next week or so, and will be able to see what's going on in the world of the womb. Excited to know what happens next? Check back for your 28th week update!

Do you know what a Chinese cabbage looks like? You'll want to find out, as this vegetable has something in common with your fetus this week! It's true: Your rapidly developing baby hits the two pound, two ounce mark this week, and weighs roughly the same as this little known cabbage. In addition, your little one measures 14.8 inches from head to heels, or ten inches from crown to rump. At your next pre-natal appointment, it's possible to tell, by palpating the belly, whether your baby is lying headfirst or feet-first in your womb. Babies who are in the breech-or feet-first-position have almost three months left to turn around-and most fetuses do. Some babies may remain in the breech position and may need to be delivered via c-section. In other news, your baby's eyes are open and blinking now. In fact, your baby may sense light filtering through your stomach. Plus, that little brain is ever expanding, developing billions of tiny neurons in preparation for life outside the womb. Want to know what will happen at the beginning of your sixth month? You know where to turn for next week's facts!