16 Weeks Pregnant: Traveling While Pregnant

16 Weeks Pregnant

In this article

• Pregnancy Week 16: All About You
• Pregnancy Week 16: All About Baby
• How Big Is Baby?
• Most Common Pregnancy Questions
• Multiple Madness
• For Your Partner
• Fun Fact

There's no better time to plan a trip than right around 16 weeks pregnant. Find out what you need to know to make your vacation fun, safe, and healthy.

Now that it's finally sinking in that this baby thing is really going to happen, it's time to think about where it's going to happen! Plan your trip to the local hospitals and birth centers—and it's not too soon to think about your birthing plan.

Speaking of trips ... this is a great time to plan a get-a-way, too!

Pregnancy Week 16: All About You

In the coming weeks you should start to feel your baby move. You'll only feel a flutter at first, but before long you'll be able to distinguish kicks and hiccups, too. As your baby-to-be gets bigger, expect more soreness in your abdomen and back. Your breasts may also feel sore and larger as the tissue fills in and readies for milk production. As pregnancy hormones continue to pulse through your system to direct your body in baby production, you may experience headaches, dizziness, and even mood changes.

Travel while Pregnant

Your second trimester starts a window of weeks when you're feeling better than you have in a long time (goodbye nausea, hello baby bump). Your pregnancy glow is in full bloom, and your rounded belly fits beautifully into maternity pants. If you're going to travel at any point in your pregnancy, now is the time.

Physicians advise against travel in the first trimester due to the increased risk of miscarriage. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), travel during the third trimester is also discouraged because of the chance of going into early labor (no one wants to go into preterm labor on the beach in Oahu). With a few safety precautions in mind you can head off for some R&R before your days and nights are filled with feedings and diapers.

Talk to your healthcare provider: Before you make any plans, discuss travel with your healthcare provider. While you may be feeling good, she needs to evaluate your health before you go. Have a few destinations in mind when you talk to her about your travel plans. For example, if you've had problems with water retention, she may advise you against a humid locale, which may aggravate your condition. Also, ask her to copy your prenatal records so that you can bring them with you—just in case. And don't forget to make sure that you have her number handy on those records if you need to call her.

Bring an approved first aid packet: You should pack a basic first aid kit, filled with medicines that come in handy when traveling (for instance Tylenol, anti-diarrhea, heartburn, and cold medicines). Review with your physician any over-the-counter and prescription medications that you plan to bring on your trip. Not all over-the-counter medicines are safe for pregnancy.

Plan on some restrictions: Keep in mind while making your travel arrangements that you won't be able to do everything, even with a physician's OK. Resorts, theme parks, and other travel providers may have restrictions on pregnant women for insurance reasons—they don't want you going into preterm labor or having complications any more than you do. Plan on sitting out the thrill rides and skipping scuba diving in favor of more relaxing vacation pursuits, such as time at the spa.

While you're there: Pregnancy is not the time for adventure travel. Keep a leisurely pace during your travels and take care or yourself. You might be tempted to do everything available and be out all day, but this can cause problems. Walking too much can lead to uncomfortable swelling.

Staying hydrated is key, too. Dehydration can cause preterm labor pains. So, be sure to drink plenty of water and take frequent potty breaks. (Avoiding bathroom breaks can aggravate your bladder and lead to urinary tract infections.)

Don't hesitate to contact your healthcare provider at any time during your trip. If you have questions about how you're feeling or medications that you plan on taking, give your physician a quick call.

Where to go: Where you choose to travel depends on your physician's guidelines. An hour-long car ride might be preferable over a long plane trip if you've had concerns during your pregnancy.

You may also want to choose US beaches over foreign locales. Some foreign destinations, especially those in third world countries, have amazing resort facilities but few medical care options if you were to have a problem.

Pregnancy Week 16: All About Baby

By week 16, your baby-to-be's body is doing more to support itself. Her kidneys function and produce urine that then passes through the umbilical cord. Within her stomach, bile is secreted, although she relies on you for all of her nutrients. Her appearance changes as her scalp hair grows and may even have color. Her developing facial muscles make it possible for her to open and close her mouth, maybe even give you a smile or two.

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17 Weeks Pregnant: Your Weight Gain

17 Weeks Pregnant



In this article

• Pregnancy Week 17: All About You
• Pregnancy Week 17: All About Baby
• How Big Is Baby?
• Most Common Pregnancy Questions
• Multiple Madness
• For Your Partner
• Fun Fact
• Follow The Chronicles of a Real-Life Pregnancy
• Join Your Due Date Club

At 17 weeks pregnant, chances are, you're not just starting to show but you're gaining some pregnancy weight as well. Here are important tips to keep you on the healthy track.

Each time you go to the doctor or clinic, they dip a strip of paper in a cup of your urine to measure your blood sugar level. What's with that blood sugar test, anyway? It's to make sure you're not developing gestational diabetes, a condition that affects around one to two percent of all pregnant women. When blood sugar levels are controlled (through diet and sometimes medication), women can have normal pregnancies and normal, healthy babies.

Pregnancy Week 17: All About You

Pregnancy Weight Gain and Other Symptoms
Daily, your body's changing inside and out to accommodate your baby-to-be. As your skin stretches, your breasts and abdomen may become itchy. Your baby bump will begin to change your posture so that your back may ache. Inside your body, your stomach is getting more cramped, sometimes leading to heartburn, indigestion, and flatulence. You may also notice mood swings as pregnancy hormones continue to play with your emotions.

Unsightly Pregnancy Signs
Your body undergoes many changes to give your baby-to-be enough room to grow. Some of these changes are comforting—your rounded belly and your full breasts, for example—while other signs can be troubling. Keep in mind that many of these physical changes will last only until your baby arrives.

• Bleeding gums: Your blood volume has increased dramatically to provide nutrients to your baby-to-be. This increase, along with swelling caused by pregnancy hormones, might make your gums bleed.
• Stretch marks: Whether or not you have stretch marks is a matter of genetics. No amount of specialty abdominal creams or Vitamin E pills are going to prevent stretch marks (despite claims to the contrary), but most women find that these stretch marks fade over time after the baby's birth.
• Weight gain: You should expect to gain 25 to 35 pounds during your pregnancy. As distressing as weight gain can be for some women, those pounds are necessary for your growing baby. Much of the weight is extra fluids (such as blood), tissues (like your breasts), and of course, your baby. (Find out how it all adds up here.) If you eat a sensible pregnancy diet and stay fit, you should be able to lose much of your pregnancy weight after your baby's birth. (Some women are able to shed pounds in a matter of weeks; others need as much as a year to get their bodies back in shape).
• Dark line (linea nigra): As your abdominal muscles stretch to make room for your growing uterus, you may notice a dark line extending from your belly button to your vaginal area. After birth, this line will disappear.
• Swelling (edema): Your body retains water to provide the necessary fluids for your growing baby-to-be. You can prevent much of this swelling from drinking plenty of fluids and keeping your legs up. You may also want to purchase socks designed to improve the circulation in your feet.
• Skin spots: The skin's pigmentation may deepen around certain parts of your body during pregnancy, such as your nipples and freckles. You may also notice spots of color on your face, called the mask of pregnancy or chloasma. These pigmentation changes will fade after your baby's born.

Pregnancy Week 17: All About Baby

Around this time your baby's ears pop from his head and Baby-to-be can now sense sounds. After all, he has plenty to listen to in utero! He's accustomed to the strong beating of your heart, blood rushing through your veins, and your stomach grumbling. He can also discern sounds outside the uterus, like your voice and music. Although, according to the Mayo Clinic, whether he can distinguish the sound of your voice versus other sounds is not yet clear.

On average, most moms are feeling fetal movement by week 17. Kick, little one, kick!

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18 Weeks Pregnant: Understanding Prenatal Tests

18 Weeks Pregnant

In this article

• Pregnancy Week 18: All About You
• Pregnancy Week 18: All About Baby
• How Big Is Baby?
• Most Common Pregnancy Questions
• Multiple Madness
• For Your Partner
• Fun Fact

Wondering what's going on with all the prenatal tests your healthcare provider is ordering? Find answers here.

Did you know that studies have shown that a full 60 percent of all expectant fathers show some symptoms of pregnancy? They may experience nausea, mood swings, weight gain, and odd cravings.

Pregnancy Week 18: All About You

By now you're feeling your baby-to-be wiggle inside you. The excitement surrounding her first movements will probably help you forget some of your pregnancy woes. As your tummy continues to expand you may notice stretch marks and have itchy skin. Your back will ache as your body adjusts to its new alignment. Thankfully, nausea is mostly likely a distant memory.

Understanding Pregnancy Tests
Between your sixteenth and twentieth weeks of pregnancy you'll be offered a series of tests to determine if your baby-to-be is at risk for certain genetic problems. Notice that these tests are offered but not required. Before you submit to the tests, it's important to understand what each entails and what the results will tell you about your developing baby.

Risk Assessments, Not Tests
Rather than view genetic tests as pass/fail, physicians see them as risk assessments, looking at whether your baby-to-be has a greater risk for certain genetic problems. For instance, a "positive" result doesn't necessarily indicate a problem with your baby, but that you might consider additional—and more definitive testing—to determine your baby's health. "The way I describe it to my patients is that these tests are like casting a wide net," explains Dr. Joanne Motino Bailey, PhD, a certified nurse midwife and a professor of women's studies at the University of Michigan. "You have plenty of healthy babies that are caught in the net" along with a handful of babies with genetic concerns.

Non-Invasive Tests
The main reason for so many false positives, according to Dr. Motino Bailey, is that physicians want to offer the safest, most non-invasive way to test your unborn baby for certain genetic disorders. These tests involve a simple blood test with virtually no risk to your baby-to-be.

• Quad test/triple screen: Your healthcare provider will draw your blood and test it for elevated levels of certain hormones and proteins, which may indicate your unborn baby has a genetic problem. The quad tests for Down syndrome, spina bifida, and other genetic problems. Keep in mind that this test has a high false positive and a high false negative rate.
Depending on your healthcare provider, you may be offered the triple screen, which includes looking at two hormone levels and one protein, or the quad test (quickly becoming the norm), which tests for an additional protein that may indicate genetic problems.
• Nuchal translucency screening (NTS): A more recent test option combines a blood test with an ultrasound to look for risk factors that may indicate that your unborn baby has Down syndrome. The test is highly specialized, however, so it may not be available in your area.
• Cystic fibrosis: Your blood sample will also be tested for cystic fibrosis. The test will determine if you are a CF carrier. If you are, your partner may then be tested. Because this is a recessive disorder, both you and your partner must be carriers for your unborn baby to be at risk. If both parents are carriers, according to ACOG, your unborn baby has a one in four chance of developing the disease.
• Ethnicity-based blood tests: Certain genetic disorders tend to appear in certain ethnicities. Your physician will ask a series of questions about your background to determine whether these tests are necessary for you.

Invasive Tests

If your first round of screening comes back with positive results (again, not meaning that your baby has a problem, but that she might be at a risk) you will be offered additional tests to give you a definitive answer about your unborn baby's genetic makeup. While these tests offer the yes/no answers you may be looking for, they do carry a risk of miscarriage.

• Amniocentesis: With an amnio, your healthcare provider inserts a long needle through your abdomen and into the uterus to collect a small sample of amniotic fluid. The fluid is then tested for genetic problems, such as Down syndrome, neural tube defects, and other disorders. The test is done between pregnancy weeks 16 and 20.
• Chorionic villus sampling (CVS): In CVS, a needle placed through your abdomen or through your vagina withdraws a tiny portion of the placenta. The sample can then be tested for Down syndrome, sickle-cell anemia, and cystic fibrosis. The test is performed between pregnancy weeks 10 and 12.

Note: CVS, a first-trimester test, provides parents with an earlier diagnosis than amniocentesis, a second-trimester test. Until recently, CVS had been associated with a slightly higher rate of miscarriage, but findings published in the September 2006 issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology show that the miscarriage rate is actually the same for both CVS and amnio, below two percent.

These tests are not to be taken lightly, advises Dr. Bailey. Take time to ask your healthcare provider about each test.

Pregnancy Week 18: All About Baby

At week 18, your baby-to-be's senses are maturing. She's able to hear sounds within her own comfortable environment, such as the sound of your heart beating, as well as external sounds, such as your voice. She may become more active for certain sounds, and you'll feel her movements. At this point in her development she's still small enough that she has plenty of room to wiggle.

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19 Weeks Pregnant: Celebrity Baby Bumps

19 Weeks Pregnant

In this article

• Pregnancy Week 19: All About You
• Pregnancy Week 19: All About Baby
• How Big Is Baby?
• Most Common Pregnancy Questions
• Multiple Madness
• For Your Partner
• Fun Facts

Do you find yourself seeking out magazines with pregnant celebrities? You're not alone. A lot of expecting women find themselves seeking out connections with fellow pregnant women.

Pregnancy Week 19: All About You

Your belly is getting rounder by the day. You may find that you need to rest more to keep your energy up. Your back and abdomen may be achy with the added weight. Expect to have some uncomfortable pregnancy symptoms fade and others get worse—your nausea has probably ended while heartburn and indigestion have taken its place. Continue to plan on plenty of bathroom breaks.

Celebrity Baby Bumps
Quick—name three pregnant celebrities. Chances are you can name more than that! You can probably even name a handful of celebrities who've given birth over the past year. Why are we so obsessed with celebrity baby bumps? "I think a big part of the fascination with celebrities' pregnancies is it humanizes them in our eyes," explains Dr. Joanne Motino Bailey, a certified nurse midwife and a woman's studies professor at the University of Michigan. Seeing a star go through pregnancy—by means of candid pictures—makes them seem more like the rest of us. After all, what could make your favorite round-bellied starlet more endearing than seeing snapshots of her downing a Big Mac in a track suit? But as with all things Hollywood, some effects of the celebrity baby boom may leave you with unrealistic expectations for your own pregnancy.

Maternity Fashions
Pregnancy clothing options used to be little more than raiding your partner's closet for shirts. Yet the celebrity baby boom has brought designers running to make pregnant women look their best. Gone are the days of ugly elastic-waist jeans and tent-like dress jumpers. You can now find maternity fashions on any budget.

The downside: We can't all afford a completely new wardrobe for a few months of use. But if you're sensible with your selection of maternity clothes, you can dress up simple shirts with stylish accessories.

Baby Bump Behavior
Back in the 1950s, pregnancy seemed almost indecent. Women wore bulky clothes to hide their bumps and spent a fair amount of time at home. This is no longer the case. Many women are often just as active and outgoing during their pregnancies as they were before conception. You can find pictures of celebrities still going to the gym, enjoying (many) a night out, and working until delivery day.

The downside: You never see the pictures of the celebrities taking naps or passing off daily tasks to their assistants. Expect to slow down and simplify your schedule during your pregnancy. Your body needs extra energy to fuel your growing baby-to-be.

Celebrity's Birth Options
Water birth, at-home birth, doula, midwife … pregnant women have many options for how they're going to deliver their babies. Celebrities made public the very private topic of pregnancy. As a result, some birth options—like home births—that were once taboo, aren't anymore.

The downside: Celebrities have an entourage of medical help to make some of their more far-flung birth requests possible. Delivering a baby in a third-world country may not be the safest option for you. And elective C-sections carry real risks.

Post-Pregnancy Body
How many times have you seen magazine covers boasting titles such as, "How [insert a celebrity's name] got her body back"? Losing post-pregnancy pounds can be extremely difficult. Some celebrities openly discuss their battles with the bulge. Knowing it's not easy for them might help you stick to your own post-pregnancy diet plan.

The downside: Many celebrities go to extremes when it comes to losing weight fast. Some even get surgical help to lose a few pounds. Others are just blessed with forever slender shapes. Watching a celebrity walk the red carpet a week after delivery can give you false sense of how quickly you'll realistically be back into your pre-pregnancy jeans.

Celebrity baby bump watching can be fun. You may feel some kinship to a once svelte siren who's now packed on the pounds, but don't compare your own experience or your body to your favorite celebrities'.

Pregnancy Week 19: All About Baby

In your 19th week of pregnancy, your unborn baby's organs continue to grow. His body is covered with lanugo soft hairs and a sticky protective coating that keeps his skin from drying out in the amniotic fluid. Your baby is moving frequently, and by now you should be able to feel those movements. Your physician can hear your baby-to-be's heartbeat with a stethoscope placed on your abdomen.

Baby is covered in vernix, a white, cheesy "cream" that protects her skin from the long bath in amniotic fluid. Preemies are covered in vernix at birth "posties" have almost none.

How Big Is Baby?

Your little one weighs in at around 7 to 8 ounces and he's between 5 and 6 inches long (crown to rump).

Most Common Pregnancy Questions

I'm 19 weeks pregnant and worried about my weight gain. How do I know if I'm gaining just the right amount? Could I be gaining too much or too little weight?
An important consideration when determining how much weight is appropriate for you is your pre pregnancy weight and your body mass index or BMI. BMI is a measurement of body fat based on your height and weight. There are some general guidelines to follow, and your healthcare provider should work with you to get you on the right track.

Most women will gain between four and six pounds during the first trimester. The weight gain in the second and third trimesters depends on what category you fall into based on your pre-pregnancy weight.

Don't try to lose weight during pregnancy or try to stay within the parameters for your pre-pregnancy weight. Too much weight gain puts you at risk for high blood pressure and diabetes. Also having a large baby can cause complications at delivery. Too little weight gain may put your baby at risk for being underweight. A woman who is underweight pre-pregnancy should gain between 28 and 40 pounds. Try to gain slightly over a pound a week in the second and third trimesters.

A woman with a normal pre-pregnant weight should gain between 25 and 35 pounds. Many women may not gain much weight during the first trimester due to nausea. But the average is four to six pounds for a healthy weight gain for your first 12 weeks of pregnancy. After the first trimester, you should gain about a pound a week. If you are overweight pre-pregnancy the recommended weight gain is 15 to 25 pounds. You should put on about one pound every two weeks in the second and third trimesters.

Don't ever try to lose weight during pregnancy.

Where Does All The Weight Go?

• Baby: 7 to 8 pounds
• Larger breasts: 1 to 3 pounds
• Larger uterus: 2 pounds
• Placenta: 1 1/2 pounds
• Amniotic fluid: 2 pounds
• Increased blood volume: 3 to 4 pounds
• Increased fluid volume: 2 to 3 pounds
• Fat stores: 6 to 8 pounds pregnancy.

Talk with your healthcare provider about what weight gain is the best for you and try to stick within those recommended parameters. Eat well! When you are feeling hungry (and you will!) try to make healthy food choices, doing so will not only help you feel better, it provides the best nutrition for your growing baby.

Multiple Madness

Famous Baby Bumps
The number of celebrities who've recently welcomed twins into the world is staggering. It's almost as though having twins is the newest PR strategy!

It's fun to watch the Hollywood crowd anticipate the arrival of stardom's newest multiples, but it's also important to keep a few things in mind.

Women sometimes get a bit frazzled when they see a celebrity who has 8-week-old twins looking slim and svelte. Don't discount that many celebrities, especially the most photographed ones, have access to dieticians, chefs, personal trainers, and airbrushing! And most have nannies who tend their children while they eat properly and run five miles each morning!

Rather than staring enviously at the latest new mom on the cover of People magazine each time you're in the checkout line, strive to emulate the celebrities who do things on their terms—or on terms that resonate with you as "real." Focus on how much they are enjoying this time. Consider moms like Jennifer Garner or Kate Hudson who openly relished time with their new babies and publicized that weight loss was not their first priority.

And remember that we see celebrities on the covers of magazines, but we don't see what goes on beyond closed doors. Nannies, chefs, and trainers aside, celebrity new moms are still new moms. They, too, experience the emotional ups and downs of new motherhood (case in point: Brooke Shields and her public battle with postpartum depression).

Take it easy on yourself. And be thankful you don't have to worry about the possibility of being photographed and critiqued each time you head to Starbucks!

For Your Partner

Famous Dads
Many women find themselves scoping out pregnant celebrities while they are also expecting. The unique sense of connection with these Hollywood figures stems from them experiencing the same things at the same time. Famous dads-to-be are harder to spot, but more and more celebrity men are "coming out" to extol the exciting, life-altering, and amazing nature of fatherhood.

Our society is changing, giving men more of a voice to be honest and open about how fatherhood feels and how it is changing their lives. And as a result, dads in the spotlight are sharing their stories.

In a society where motherhood is revered and fatherhood is seen more as a supporting actor's role, it is fun to see male stars come out and freely state how fatherhood is affecting them. Brad Pitt has been quoted several times stating fatherhood is the greatest role in his life so far. Tiger Woods talks about changing diapers and getting less sleep. "It's an awakening," says Philip Seymour Hoffman, who reports that when you become a parent everything changes; you look at your own parents differently, and at your own childhood differently. "When you have a child, as anyone knows who has them, that's basically all you want to talk about," he adds.

Take a note from these Hollywood dads and make a point to share with your spouse how you feel and what you think about your impending fatherhood. She'll appreciate the insight! The more involved you become in the lives of your children, the more likely they are also to experience benefits from being involved.

Fun Facts

Pregnancy on TV has come a long way. When Lucille Ball was pregnant during her run on I Love Lucy, TV censors thought using the term "pregnancy" on air would be in appropriate. Instead, the script called for the actors to refer to Lucy as "expecting."

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20 Weeks Pregnant: Let's Talk About Gender



20 Weeks Pregnant



In this article

• Pregnancy Week 20: All About You
• Pregnancy Week 20: All About Baby
• How Big Is Baby?
• Most Common Pregnancy Questions
• Multiple Madness
• For Your Partner
• Fun Facts

Boy or girl? Right around your 20th week of pregnancy, an ultrasound can answer that big question for you.

Sex and more sex! Remember that unless you've been advised against it by your healthcare provider because of bleeding or risk of miscarriage, sex is fine, a good stress reliever, and a great way to "touch bases" with your partner. Don't feel up to it? That's OK, too. Read Sex and Pregnancy and remember that cuddling is a good thing, too.

Pregnancy Week 20: All About You

The Gender Ultrasound
You're finally comfortable in your maternity clothes—your protruding baby bump proudly declaring you're going to be a mom, soon. In fact, you're halfway there! By now you're feeling your unborn baby wiggle and kick—which may be caused by your baby experiencing hiccups. Along with your progressing pregnancy, you may also notice more aches and pains. Your lower back and abdomen may be sore from your growing belly. Heartburn, indigestion, and flatulence are frequent as your expanding uterus allows less space for your stomach. Swelling, called edema, may make your hands and feet uncomfortable, too.

The Big Ultrasound
This week you'll get a sneak peak at your unborn baby! At 20 weeks, most physicians request that you receive an ultrasound to determine that your baby-to-be is developing normally, that your due date is accurate, and—if you're interested—whether there are pink or blue baby booties in your future.

Ultrasound BasicsUltrasound is a safe, relatively comfortable procedure that gives physicians more information about your developing baby. An ultrasound technician will apply a topical gel to your abdomen so that the high-frequency sound waves can travel easily through your belly. The technician then moves a transducer, a handheld device that looks something like a grocery store scanner, around your abdomen, sending sound waves as it goes. These waves, once translated through the ultrasound machine, generate a picture. The ultrasound technician will take several measurements of different parts of your unborn baby's body to make sure her development is on track.

Don't be surprised if you're asked to arrive for your ultrasound with a full bladder. A full bladder constricts your baby-to-be's wiggle room, making for easier imaging. But because things are so crowded in there, the ultrasound technician may have to prod your unborn baby into resituating so that all the measurements can be made. With a full bladder and pressure from the transducer on your abdomen, the ultrasound may be slightly unpleasant—but don't worry, the pictures will be worth it!

The ultrasound usually lasts around 30 minutes. Depending on the office where you receive your ultrasound, you may be able to receive a recording of the session or at least several pictures to show off your baby-to-be. Not all lab offices offer recordings of the ultrasound for moms-to-be so call beforehand to check what the lab offers. You can also ask if you can take home a picture or two.

Your baby's gender: In most cases, your ultrasound technician will be able to tell you if you're having a girl or boy. If you don't want to know, tell the technician before you begin so that you don't inadvertently see or hear something you shouldn't. (Try your hand at predicting Baby's gender with our Gender Predictor!)

For those women who do want to know the baby's sex, the results are usually accurate. Usually. The accuracy rates for determining your unborn baby's gender by ultrasound are about 80 to 90 percent. Keep in mind, the ultrasound technician needs to get a clear picture of your unborn baby's "parts" to be certain. For girls, the technician will be looking for three small lines between her legs indicating the female labia. For little boys, the technician will be looking for a developed penis and scrotum. Be forewarned some babies do not cooperate for this look at their private parts and wiggle and squirm to the point that the technician may not be able to say with any degree of certainty whether you're having a boy or a girl.

Take a look at our great collection of second trimester ultrasounds—and see if you can tell boys from girls.

Is ultrasound necessary? While the 20-week ultrasound is traditional, it's not necessary. "There's no advantage to performing an ultrasound if a woman's pregnancy is otherwise normal and healthy," explains Dr. Joanne Motino Bailey, PhD, CNM. "While it has become standard practice, there's no medical evidence that shows that performing standard ultrasounds improves a baby's outcome." That said, Dr. Bailey points out that most mothers find the ultrasound to be a comfort, getting a chance to finally see their unborn babies. In other countries, such as Japan, many women receive an ultrasound at every office visit, notes Dr. Bailey. This is also the case for many moms experiencing high-risk pregnancies, were trips to the ultrasound technician may occur once or twice each week.

Pregnancy Week 20: All About Baby

By week 20, your baby-to-be is gearing up for the next phase in his development—filling out. His organs are getting into their proper places. His kidneys are now in position with their familiar bean shape. His testes (or ovaries for girls) have reached their position. His brain continues to form and grow. His teeth are beginning to appear, and he can swallow. If you haven't been able to feel him move, chances are you'll be feeling him move more and more over the coming weeks.

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21 Weeks Pregnant: Bonding With Baby-to-Be

21 Weeks Pregnant

In this article

• Pregnancy Week 21: All About You
• Pregnancy Week 21: All About Baby
• How Big Is Baby?
• Most Common Pregnancy Questions
• Multiple Madness
• For Your Partner
• Fun Fact

You don't have to wait until your baby arrives to begin bonding. Try these simple ideas to feel closer to your little one during your 21st week of pregnancy, and beyond.

Pregnancy Week 21: All About You

Now that your body is accustomed to your new addition, you'll notice several pregnancy symptoms disappear: Nausea becomes a distant memory and fatigue more manageable. Your breasts and abdomen are less tender, but you may experience itchiness and see stretch marks as your body continues to expand. As your internal organs are pushed aside to make room for the growing fetus, you may have heartburn, indigestion, and bloating. Your mood swings lessen, but you may have more anxiety about labor and motherhood as the reality of your baby's birth draws closer.

Bonding with Your Baby-to-Be

You don't have to wait until your baby arrives to begin bonding. Throughout your pregnancy you may have thoughts and impressions about your baby-to-be's personality. Maybe she constantly wiggles at a certain time of day, or her movements become less frequent when you're listening to particular kinds of music. Try these simple ideas to feel closer your little one.

Talk to your baby-to-be: According to a 2005 study by Barbara Kisilevsky, a nursing professor at Queens University in Ontario, Canada, babies prefer their mothers' voices even before they're born. Kisilevsky, who conducted the research with a team of psychologists from Queens and obstetricians in Hangzhou, China, found that babies' heart rates in utero accelerated at the sound of their mothers' voices. You can help your baby get to know your voice by talking to him. Sing to him in the car, rattle off the ingredients as you cook dinner, or read to him. Let other family members in on the fun; your partner or other children can talk to your tummy, too!

Start a library for your little one: If this is your first child, you may not have any baby books in your home. Before your baby arrives, pick out stories you can share with her. You'll be reading these stories over and over again, so choose carefully. (And remember, you don't have to wait she's born to start reading to her.)

Listen to music together: Your baby can hear sounds, including music, in utero (how well she hears it is still a matter of scientific study). While you may not convert your baby-to-be to your preferred bands, you'll feel a connection to her as she kicks during your favorite tunes. Try picking an anthem for your baby—maybe a Beatles classic, a country ballad, or a calming lullaby.

Ready the nursery: Preparing your child's room can help you envision what life will be like once he arrives. Choosing colors, picking out crib sheets, and adding decorations to plain walls may make your impending motherhood feel all the more real.

Buy baby clothes: Shopping for a little one can be fun. Just look at how small those newborn socks are! Display your finds on hangers in the nursery.

Blog your pregnancy: Help your family and friends know more about how you're feeling through a website designed around your pregnancy. Post ultrasound pictures or—if you're brave enough—pictures of your growing baby bump. Friends and family can offer support and share in your excitement. (Or use our tools to create your own online pregnancy journal!)

Keep a journal of your thoughts: Take time to reflect on what it means to be carrying your child. Record these thoughts in a diary so that you'll never forget how you felt during your pregnancy. You may even share this journal with your child once he gets older.

Pregnancy Week 21: All About Baby

Your little one will begin to fill out over the next few weeks. Fat layers form throughout your unborn baby's body. These layers will eventually keep him warm and insulated once outside the womb. Soft hair, called lanugo, covers his body, too. His eyelids are still closed, making him appear like he's sleeping, but frequent wiggles will let you know he's awake. You may also feel Baby hiccupping.Those jerky motions you feel in your belly are a result of little lungs practicing the important task of breathing.

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