38 Weeks

Your due date is right around the corner and your baby's just waiting for the right time to be born. She's continuing to build a layer of fat, which will help her to control her body's temperature after birth and will put on more weight (boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls). Take it easy during the final week or so — this may be your last opportunity to relax. Instead of spending every available minute decorating the nursery or folding baby clothes, go out and see a film, read a book or take long naps. Don't forget to spend some quality time with your partner too — it will probably be your last chance to have an evening out together for a while.

37 Weeks

Your baby weighs close to 6.5 pounds / 2.8 kilograms and may be about 20 inches / 50 centimetres long from head to toe. Your baby's head is now cradled in your pelvic cavity -- surrounded and protected by your pelvic bones. This position clears some much-needed space for her growing legs and buttocks.

Many babies now have a full head of hair, with locks maybe around one inch / 2.5 centimetres long. But don't be surprised if her hair isn't the same colour as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes taken aback when their children are born with bright red or blond hair, and fair-haired couples likewise can produce babies with dark hair. And then, of course, some babies don't have any hair at all.

Speaking of hair, most of the downy coat of lanugo that covered your baby from 26 weeks has disappeared, and so has most of the vernix caseosa, the whitish substance that also covers her. Your baby will swallow her lanugo and exterior coating, along with other secretions, and store them in her bowels. These will become your infant's first bowel movement, a blackish waste called meconium.

36 Weeks

Your baby is still gaining weight -- about an ounce/ 28 grams a day. She weighs nearly 6 pounds/ 2.7 kilograms and is 19 inches/ 45 centimetres long from head to toe.

You may begin to feel an increased pressure in your lower abdomen and notice that your baby is gradually dropping. This is called lightening or engagement, and your lungs and stomach will finally get a chance to stretch out a little -- breathing and eating should become easier. However, walking may become increasingly uncomfortable -- some women say it feels as if the baby is going to fall out. Also, you may still feel as if you need to go to the loo all the time. Stock up on those last minute nutrients with our eating well guide.

The good news is that by the end of this week, your pregnancy will be full-term and you could give birth any day now. (Babies between 37 and 42 weeks are considered full-term -- a baby born before 37 weeks is premature and after 42 is post-term.) At your weekly visit, your doctor or midwife may check to see if you've started dilating (when the cervix opens) and effacing (when the cervix thins). The midwife will also check what position the baby is in, in order to estimate how far the baby has dropped into the pelvis. This information will be entered into your maternity notes so that your midwife in will know the position of the baby when you go into labour.

35 Weeks

Your baby now weighs about 5.25 pounds/ 2.4 kilograms and measures approximately 18 inches/ 45 centimetres from head to toe. His elbow, foot or head may protrude from your stomach when he stretches and squirms about. Soon, as the wall of your uterus and your abdomen stretch thinner and let in more light, your baby will begin to develop daily activity cycles.

This week, your little one is now sporting fingernails and has a fully developed pair of kidneys. His liver can also process some waste products.

There's much less amniotic fluid and much more baby in your uterus, which has expanded to 1,000 times its original size. You've probably put on between 25 and 30 pounds/ 11 and 13.6 kilograms and your weight gain has hit its peak. Even your belly button has got bigger and has popped outward. You may be feeling breathless now that the top of your uterus is up under your ribs. Try getting down on all fours to take deeper breaths. Although the pressure on your bladder will make the bathroom your second home, don't drink any less water -- your baby needs the fluids. But you may like to cut down on diuretic drinks like tea and coffee, which will make you have to urinate even more often.

34 Weeks

Your baby now weighs more than 4.7 pounds / 2.2 kilograms and is 18 inches / over 45 centimetres from top to toe. She's filling out and getting rounder -- she'll need her fat layers later to regulate her body temperature.

fetal development at 34 weeksIf you don't already talk to your baby, this is a good time to start -- at 35 weeks her hearing is fully developed. Don't feel ridiculous if you're already chatting in baby talk. Some evidence shows that newborns pay closer attention to high-pitched tones.

If you've been nervous about going into premature labour, you'll be happy to know that 99 per cent of babies born at week 35 can survive outside the womb -- and most have no major problems. Although your baby's central nervous system is still maturing, her lungs are nearly fully developed by now.

33 Weeks

Your baby is probably head-down in your uterus — although he may continue to change position — and his skull bones are still pliable to help him ease through the birth canal. A few babies remain breech and may need extra care during delivery. Mild, irregular contractions known as Braxton Hicks (practice contractions) may become more noticeable as the days go by.

32 Weeks

No wonder you're starting to feel huge — it's crowded in there! The growing pressure on your bladder may mean frequent trips to the loo — which can make a good night's sleep difficult. You may be gaining around 500g/ 1lb a week now and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next seven weeks, fattening up for survival outside the womb. Thanks to these fatty deposits, his skin is getting plumper and looking healthier.

31 Weeks

Your baby's arms, legs and body continue to fill out -- and they are finally proportional in size to her head. She weighs about 3.3 pounds/1.5 kilograms and looks more like a newborn. She measures about 16 inches/ 41 centimetres from crown to toe.

You may notice your baby isn't moving around as much. Don't worry; she's just running out of space in your uterus. As long as you can feel her squirming, you'll know she's just fine. Believe it or not, she still has plenty of growing to do. You can expect her to gain at least two more pounds/900 grams before delivery.

30 Weeks

Good news — at this point your baby's lungs and digestive tract are nearly mature, meaning she'll do much better in the event of premature birth. Researchers also believe your baby can actually see now, in utero, but no one knows exactly how much she can make out. She's also becoming more cramped in your uterus and less able to move so freely, although when she does move, it's very noticeable.

29 Weeks

Your baby's head is getting bigger and his brain is developing billions of neurons (important for later learning) at an amazing rate. His nutritional needs are growing too. To meet his body's demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamin C, folic acid and iron. His bones in particular are soaking up lots of calcium right now, so drink your milk (or if you don't like the taste, try calcium-enriched orange juice).

28Weeks

You may notice about now, that your baby moves around a lot more when you have a bath or shower. She's responding to the light and noise. Your breasts may begin to produce colostrum, the concentrated early milk, so don't be surprised if they leak a little.

27 Weeks

You're in the home stretch — two trimesters down, one more to go. Your baby is growing steadily as he prepares for delivery day. He will gain weight rapidly over the next weeks and, as the size of your bump increases, you may feel more breathless and tired. Your baby's acting more like a newborn now, too. He opens and closes his eyes, sleeps and wakes at regular intervals, and may suck a finger or thumb. He may also be hiccuping a lot this week, which explains that odd rhythmic sensation you've probably been feeling.

26 Weeks

Your baby's becoming more sensitive to sound as the network of nerves in her ears develops. If dad talks to her now, she might learn to recognise his voice. The more she hears it, the more likely she is to find it soothing after she's born. If he feels strange just talking to the baby, he can read the newspaper or a book out loud.

25 Weeks

Your baby is responsive to touch now. You can have fun with him by trying to tickle his foot when he kicks you or by lying on your back and rolling from side to side, to see how he reacts. His eyelids open around now and his heart is beating so strongly, it may be heard with a stethoscope.

24 Weeks

Your baby is still on the skinny side with no body fat but his brain is growing rapidly and he's starting to fill the space in your uterus. By now, you probably have a definite "pregnant" shape and the linea nigra, a dark line of pigmentation, may appear down the centre of your abdomen. Your baby's taste buds are also forming and, believe it or not, his sweet tooth. Could that explain your sudden craving for doughnuts? No one knows for sure but it's a good excuse, next time you find yourself visiting the bakery.

23 Weeks

Feeling energetic and excited about the forthcoming birth? If you find yourself dancing around the house with joy, your baby will hear the music and feel you sway, since his hearing and sense of movement are well developed now. He's also started blinking his eyelids. At the end of this week, your baby becomes "viable". This means that he has a chance of survival if he makes an early arrival. However, with each week that passes, he becomes more and more mature and better able to cope with the outside world.

22 Weeks

Your baby's skin is still quite wrinkled because he has so much growing still to do. But his face and body are beginning to look more like those of a newborn as his lips, eyelids and ears become more distinct. If people are telling you that you look smaller or bigger than you should at this point, remember that all women and their babies grow at different rates. What's important is that you see continuous growth and change, not how fast or slow it is.

21 Weeks

You may soon feel like your baby's practising martial arts as his initial fluttering movements turn into fully fledged kicks and nudges. As your pregnancy progresses, you may be able to decipher a pattern to his activity. Some babies are restless in the evening, just as you're trying to fall asleep; others get busy during the daytime. Your baby may be trying out different facial expressions around now, although his eyelids still remain closed.

20 Weeks

By now you can probably feel your baby move around. Enjoy it — those butterfly flutters are one of the true joys of pregnancy. She's also giving her new digestive system a little practice by swallowing amniotic fluid, from which she absorbs nutrients and water. The unabsorbed matter continues into her bowel where it concentrates into meconium, the greenish black or light brown substance she'll pass the first few days after she's born.

19 Weeks

Congratulations! You've hit the halfway mark in your pregnancy. You'll start growing even more rapidly in the weeks to come, so don't be surprised if you find yourself slowing down. If you feel the urge to indulge in an afternoon nap, go for it, if you can — you and your baby deserve it. Her hearing is developing, and she'll be getting used to the sound of your voice. Tiny teeth are also forming in her gums.