Strangers have no problem commenting on your baby bump. You’re feeling just as tired as you did the first few weeks of pregnancy, but you can’t seem to sleep at night. Everything either hurts or itches. You may be starting to wonder if you can follow through with this whole birthing thing…
Choose Your Week
- Pregnancy Week 25
- Pregnancy Week 26
- Pregnancy Week 27
- Pregnancy Week 28
- Pregnancy Week 29
- Pregnancy Week 30
Sources of information included in this series include What to Expect, American Pregnancy Association, several specific sources cited within the text, and my personal experience as a biological mother of two!
Pregnancy Week 25 Development
How many months pregnant is 25 weeks?
25 weeks equals almost six months pregnant!
Where is the baby located at 25 weeks?
Baby’s topping out at nearly 2.5 inches above your belly button this week. Is that a balloon slowly inflating in your abdomen? It can’t be. It must be made of lead, based on the pressure building in your uterus, right?
What does a baby look like at 25 weeks?
- Average fetal length at 25 weeks: 13 inches
- Average fetal weight at 25 weeks: 1.5 pounds
The Moro reflex (aka the startle reflex), which causes the baby’s arms to fly up in the air like it’s riding a rollercoaster, has started to develop. Even though the baby’s still scrawny, it’s finally packing on some fat that will protect its bones and internal organs at birth. That white hair may start to show some color now, as well!
There are blood vessels growing in the baby’s lungs, and surfactant (a substance that helps the lungs expand with oxygen) is being produced now as well. The baby can even take practice breaths by “breathing” amniotic fluid through its nose! It’ll still be a while, though, before the baby is capable of breathing air on its own.
Pregnancy Week 25 Symptoms & Baby Bumps
Hey, mama. I bet you’re thinking there couldn’t possibly be any more symptoms that show up through pregnancy, right? I mean, I’ve already listed a couple of DOZEN of them. But I’ve got news for you: building a whole new human is a hefty job, and a big production means big side effects. This week’s lovely symptom is…
Hemorrhoids! Oh, yes, those lovely, itchy, painfully swollen veins around your butthole. They show up thanks to the pressure of your uterus on your bowels. More than half of women get them during pregnancy, so you’re not alone. On the bright side, like most of your symptoms, they should be alleviated by the medicine of childbirth. (And even though I didn’t get any hemorrhoids during either of my pregnancies, I had one pop up after my second was born – and it took several years to go away.)
Constipation makes hemorrhoids worse, so make sure to drink plenty of water AND eat plenty of fiber (one or the other is not enough!), and buy witch hazel pads in bulk to soothe your aggravated bum. Relax and don’t push hard during your poops, because straining will make hemorrhoids worse; doing Kegels may help things move more smoothly, too.
Continuing symptoms:
- food cravings
- heartburn
- gas
- vaginal discharge
- constipation
- dizziness
- increased OR decreased sex drive
- varicose veins
- round ligament pain
- increased mucus and oil production
- sensitive gums
- forgetfulness
- stretch marks
- backaches
- leg cramps
- swelling
- fast-growing hair and nails
- Braxton-Hicks contractions
- skin discoloration
- altered vision
Pregnancy Week 25 Video
Pregnancy Week 26 Development
How many months pregnant is 26 weeks?
26 weeks equals six months pregnant. You’re getting close to the third trimester!
Where is the baby located at 26 weeks?
At just over 2.5 inches above your belly button, it’s super easy to feel the top of your uterus any time you want. And if you’re like me, you push on that sucker constantly, because you’re still amazed there’s a whole human growing in there. The question is, is it safe to push on your uterus during your pregnancy?
The answer I prefer is, if your doctor pushes your uterus harder than you do when he’s measuring it, then you’re not hurting your baby. Uteri (uteruses?) are thicker than you think, and there’s also a ton of water and placenta and other stuff you’re probably displacing before you even get close to pressing the baby’s head. So poke away, mama, and wonder at the miracle of your body.
What does a baby look like at 26 weeks?
- Average fetal length at 26 weeks: 13.5 inches
- Average fetal weight at 26 weeks: 2 pounds
Your precious bundle of joy has now sprouted fingernails! But be forewarned: those nails can come out of the womb fairly long, so prepare for your boobs to be clawed before you get a chance to clip the tiny things. The baby’s also about to start growing faster than your uterus, which means it’ll have less room to do flips and twists (but don’t worry, it’ll still be able to grow and plump up).
Those beautiful eyelashes may be fluttering now because the baby is able to open its eyes! They don’t have any pigment yet, though, and permanent eye color often doesn’t show up until up to a year after birth!
Pregnancy Week 26 Symptoms & Baby Bumps
All of your many, many symptoms have now caused a new one in and of themselves: insomnia. Sleeping can be hard between the aching, peeing, heartburn and 2 AM cravings for Cinnamon Toast Crunch (or was that just me?).
If you find yourself having trouble staying asleep, try engaging in some pregnancy-safe exercises or meditation, and avoid drinking fluids for a couple of hours before bedtime to prevent frequent bathroom breaks in the middle of the night.
Continuing symptoms:
- food cravings
- heartburn
- gas
- vaginal discharge
- constipation
- dizziness
- increased OR decreased sex drive
- varicose veins
- round ligament pain
- increased mucus and oil production
- sensitive gums
- forgetfulness
- stretch marks
- backaches
- leg cramps
- swelling
- fast-growing hair and nails
- Braxton-Hicks contractions
- skin discoloration
- altered vision
- hemorrhoids
Pregnancy Week 26 Video
Pregnancy Week 27 Development
How many months pregnant is 27 weeks?
27 weeks equals over six months pregnant! At 27 weeks, you are now in the third trimester. You’re in the home stretch!
Where is the baby located at 27 weeks?
The top of your uterus is around 3 inches above your belly button. You’re probably feeling like you’re all belly at this point – and I hate to break it to you, but you’re starting to look it! Some babies have already flipped head-down by now, or perhaps a diagonal-downward position.
What does a baby look like at 27 weeks?
- Average fetal length at 27 weeks: 14 inches
- Average fetal weight at 27 weeks: 2.1 pounds
If it feels like your belly is jumping a little bit, and repeatedly, it could be the baby hiccuping! It’s a normal part of lung development (and will, of course, continue after birth). Baby’s over a foot long now (whoa!) but still likes being curled up in a ball, which is where the term “fetal position” comes from.
Even though that waxy vernix is coating the baby’s ears, it can probably hear your partner when they talk to your belly, so the baby will start to recognize both of you now! If the baby’s back is pressing against the outside of your belly, your partner may even be able to press their ear against it and hear the heartbeat. Swoon!
Pregnancy Week 27 Symptoms & Baby Bumps
If you’ve read the weekly symptoms for each week up till now, you can take a breather – there’s really nothing new to add now. (And really, what more could there possibly be?! Have you seen the size of that list below??) However, if any of your symptoms get severe or seem unusual, like extreme pelvic pain, severely bleeding gums, extreme swelling or numbness in your limbs, or painful contractions, it could be a sign of something more serious.
Gingivitis is linked to premature delivery. Preeclampsia occurs when swelling is accompanied by high blood pressure and protein in your urine. Nausea, at this stage, can be a sign of gestational diabetes. Some of these things your OBGYN should check regularly, but some might go unseen (newsflash: doctors aren’t perfect!). Be sure to mention any and all symptoms to your doctor as they appear.
Continuing symptoms:
- food cravings
- heartburn
- gas
- vaginal discharge
- constipation
- dizziness
- increased OR decreased sex drive
- varicose veins
- round ligament pain
- increased mucus and oil production
- sensitive gums
- forgetfulness
- stretch marks
- backaches
- leg cramps
- swelling
- fast-growing hair and nails
- Braxton-Hicks contractions
- skin discoloration
- altered vision
- hemorrhoids
- insomnia
Pregnancy Week 27 Video
Pregnancy Week 28 Video
How many months pregnant is 28 weeks?
28 weeks equals six-and-a-half months pregnant!
Where is the baby located at 28 weeks?
Amniotic fluid has pushed the fundus to about 3.25 inches above your belly button this week! If you’re not sure whether the baby has flipped head-down yet, there are a few ways to try and tell. If you can feel the baby’s hiccups, wherever you’re feeling them is likely the position of the head bobbing up and down. (I didn’t feel my first baby hiccup till nearly my due date, and I NEVER felt hiccups with my second.)
If you’ve got a big, firm lump near the top of your uterus, you can try giving it a little push – if it’s baby’s butt, you might feel everything shift down a bit on the inside. Personally, I could never tell the difference between a head and a butt and relied on my doctor to tell me where my baby was!
What does a baby look like at 28 weeks?
- Average fetal length at 28 weeks: 14.5 inches
- Average fetal weight at 28 weeks: 2.3 pounds
Baby’s looking plumper every day! It’s also practicing lots of new skills, like coughing, sticking out its tongue, and fluttering its undoubtedly long eyelashes. That itty bitty brain is growing fast and starting to get its wrinkles, which allows more room for brain cells to form. Around now is when the brain is capable of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, the sleep cycle in which we dream – so the baby may be dreaming of your soothing voice!
Pregnancy Week 28 Symptoms & Baby Bumps
With the baby’s head moving lower and your whole uterus weighing down on your lower spine, you may start to experience sciatica – tingling numbness or shooting pain from your tailbone all the way down your legs. Often, it’s a shooting, temporary pain that comes and goes, but for some, it can become a crippling pain that’s difficult to find relief from until childbirth. Poking the baby until it changes positions sometimes helps relieve the pain of sciatica. If that doesn’t work, try stretching, floating in a pool, or lying down on your left side.
You should never lie on your right side at this point in pregnancy because the weight of your uterus can cut off the blood flow of the main artery on the right side of your body.
Continuing symptoms:
- food cravings
- heartburn
- gas
- vaginal discharge
- constipation
- dizziness
- increased OR decreased sex drive
- varicose veins
- round ligament pain
- increased mucus and oil production
- sensitive gums
- forgetfulness
- stretch marks
- backaches
- leg cramps
- swelling
- fast-growing hair and nails
- Braxton-Hicks contractions
- skin discoloration
- altered vision
- hemorrhoids
- insomnia
Pregnancy Week 28 Video
Pregnancy Week 29 Development
How many months pregnant is 29 weeks?
29 weeks equals almost seven months pregnant!
Where is the baby located at 29 weeks?
The top of your uterus is about 3.5 inches above your belly button now, and the baby’s growth spurts haven’t even really begun – its weight will TRIPLE between now and 40 weeks! (Feeling nervous yet?) What this really means is the baby still has plenty of room to roll around in there, so if it’s breech, it’s not time to panic yet.
What does a baby look like at 29 weeks?
- Average fetal length at 29 weeks: 15 inches
- Average fetal weight at 29 weeks: over 2.5 pounds
Baby’s working on a new skill that will make you melt the first time you see it (voluntary or not) – smiling! Most babies smile from birth when gas bubbles move, but it will be a few months before you get your first “intentional” smile (the earliest between my two children was my second child, my son, at 9 weeks).
Also, the little bean isn’t so little anymore. Before, the baby was putting on brown fat, the kind that regulates body temperature. Now, it’s putting on white fat (the same kind you have) which will provide the baby with energy when it’s out and ready to roll around! However, you may notice the baby’s movement starts to slow down now because it’s running out of room in the womb.
29-Week Preemie Survival Rate
Pregnancy Week 29 Symptoms & Baby Bumps
Those kicks and punches may slow down, but that doesn’t mean they should stop completely! It would be best if you started doing kick counts now (first thing in the morning and while resting in the afternoon) to make sure the baby’s activity level stays normal.
Continuing symptoms:
- food cravings
- heartburn
- gas
- vaginal discharge
- constipation
- dizziness
- increased OR decreased sex drive
- varicose veins
- round ligament pain
- increased mucus and oil production
- sensitive gums
- forgetfulness
- stretch marks
- backaches
- leg cramps
- swelling
- fast-growing hair and nails
- Braxton-Hicks contractions
- skin discoloration
- altered vision
- hemorrhoids
- insomnia
Pregnancy Week 29 Video
Pregnancy Week 30 Development
How many months pregnant is 30 weeks?
30 weeks equals seven months pregnant!
Where is the baby located at 30 weeks?
Baby’s growth is pushing your uterus up into your rib cage now, and just thinking of it makes mine hurt! Still haven’t gotten the hang of knowing where baby’s head is? Don’t feel bad, because I never could either, unless they were very active and kicking outward so I knew where the head wasn’t. Generally, though, you should start feeling pretty firm kicks wherever the baby’s feet are, and light “fluttering” (hand and head movements) on the other end.
What does a baby look like at 30 weeks?
- Average fetal length at 30 weeks: 15.5 inches
- Average fetal weight at 30 weeks: 3 pounds
Baby has developed a pretty firm grip, and is probably practicing pulling on its toes! Now that the baby’s starting to pack on the fat, the lanugo – the fine, downy hair that was keeping it warm before – will slowly start to disappear. Baby’s bone marrow is responsible for 100% of blood cell production now, which means its body doesn’t have to rely on any organs to produce enough blood now.
Pregnancy Week 30 Symptoms & Baby Bumps
Remember how tired you felt when you first got pregnant? Yeah… That fatigue is about to come back, and harder than ever. Carrying around extra weight while expending more energy to keep building that new human is going to start taking its toll, and you’re going to find yourself running on fumes at the end of each day. Don’t feel bad about taking it easy or getting a little extra sleep – once the baby’s born, NONE of that will be happening!
Continuing symptoms:
- food cravings
- heartburn
- gas
- vaginal discharge
- constipation
- dizziness
- increased OR decreased sex drive
- varicose veins
- round ligament pain
- increased mucus and oil production
- sensitive gums
- forgetfulness
- stretch marks
- backaches
- leg cramps
- swelling
- fast-growing hair and nails
- Braxton-Hicks contractions
- skin discoloration
- altered vision
- hemorrhoids
- insomnia
