Your Pregnancy Week By Week

Weekly Fetal Development: Week by Week – Pregnancy Week 22

This pregnancy week, taste buds are forming on your baby's tongue this week and your baby is very capable of experiencing the sensation of touch. Your baby may begin to feel the world around him by grabbing his fingers, umbilical cord and feet. If you are carrying a little girl, her body has already produced all the eggs her ovaries will contain throughout her entire life.

Pamper yourself this week by getting a prenatal massage. The aches and pains of pregnancy can take its toll on most pregnant women. Listen to your body and try to take it easy. Remember----no heavy lifting and during the hot summer months, it is extra important to stay hydrated.

Weekly Fetal Development: Week by Week – Pregnancy Week 23

Sometime during this week, your baby will begin to develop a special slippery substance known as surfactant. This substance is crucial for breathing because it allows the small air sacs in our lungs (known as alveoli) to inflate and it prevents them from collapsing on themselves every time we exhale! Fat production is also still developing and your baby begins to look more and more like a newborn baby.

Don't worry if you feel a little more forgetful than usual. The extra hormones and the extra stress your body is under can often cause many women to forget more things than they used to. It is not uncommon for pregnant mommies to lose car keys, wallets and cellphones on a regular basis. If you seem a bit more forgetful than you'd like, discuss this with your OBGYN doctor.

Weekly Fetal Development: Week by Week – Pregnancy Week 24

Footprints and fingerprints are continuing to develop based on the movement of your baby. Every time he/she kicks or moves through the amniotic fluid, he/she is creating unique grooves in their feet and hands that will become their unique fingerprints! Sometime during the next few weeks, your baby will also begin to get into a regular sleeping and waking cycle.

Unfortunately, while baby is getting into a normal sleeping and waking cycle, most pregnant moms are getting out of one. The increased size of your growing uterus can make you toss and turn at night now. Finding a comfortable position in bed will become increasingly difficult. Check out an assortment of body pillows to help you fall asleep and stay comfortable.

If your baby were to be born this week, he would go to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to complete his growth and development. He may spend months in the NICU and he will need special breathing equipment at first, but advances in medical technology has ensured that his chances of survival is better than ever!

Weekly Fetal Development: Week by Week – Pregnancy Week 25

Although your baby's eyes are fully developed, they may still be fused shut. Sometime over the next few pregnancy weeks though, your baby will begin to open his eyes and look around his darkened world. He even has eyelashes on his eyes and his eyebrows are now well formed. By now he may weight almost 2 pounds!

During the next several pregnancy weeks, your baby will continue to grow rapidly and gain weight. Just be sure you aren't following in your baby's footsteps. You do not need to “eat for two” and most doctors recommend that you gain only 20-30 pounds during your pregnancy. Following a good pregnancy diet will ensure that you maintain your calories and get all the nutrition you need for both you and your baby.

Weekly Fetal Development: Week by Week – Pregnancy Week 26

Your baby is growing in leaps and bounds. He/She is now capable of maintaining balance and can even tell if he is right side up in your uterus. If your baby's eyes are open, he may even begin blinking! Brain waves are stronger this week and the bronchial tract is developing further.

If you haven't already started, now is the time to begin looking for baby names. You and your partner can have lots of fun trying to pick the perfect baby name for your little bundle of joy. Check out a list of the best baby names of all time and decide for yourself what your baby will be!