Trimester 2
Pregnancy Tracker Week 13
Mother
By now, your regular clothing may be feeling a bit snug—and it’s time for the transition to looser garments! Your breasts have increased in size and weight. The areola, which surrounds the nipple, is growing larger and darker, and the veins in your breasts are becoming more visible.
Baby
Your baby is now about 7-8 cm in length and weighs about 23 g. Your baby’s ovaries or testes are fully developed, and their genitals are forming outside their body. Your baby’s unique fingerprints are already in place and their vocal cords will start to develop.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 14
Mother
As your uterus expands to make room for your baby, you will start to notice a definite tummy bulge. Now or soon you will need new clothing to fit your growing waist. And for the first time in a long time, you may feel the need to urinate less often.
Baby
Your baby is now about 9cm long and weighs about 43 g. Their neck is longer, and the head now sits up from the chest. They are covered in lanugo, a fine downy hair that keeps them warm. They are also growing hair on their head along with eyebrows. They can now grasp, frown and may even suck their thumb.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 15
Mother
Your pregnancy may now be evident to others if you wear form-fitting clothing or maternity clothes. However, this varies from woman to woman and depends on your own body shape and build. With your circulatory system moving more blood than usual through your veins and arteries, you may develop varicose veins—blueish veins that are a bit swollen and can cause discomfort. Don’t be surprised if you notice increased vaginal discharge. As long as it is white and watery-looking, the discharge is normal.
Baby
Your baby is now about 11cm long and weighs about 85 g. Their legs are growing longer than their arms and all joints and limbs can move. The fingernails are also fully formed. Your baby will start to hear and develop hiccups, but you won’t be able to hear it as their lungs are filled with fluid rather than air. If the external genitals are developed enough, the gender of your baby can be determined by ultrasound.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 16
Mother
Around this time, you will start to notice that the symptoms that you had early in the pregnancy are starting to ease up. You might find that your energy level is picking up. It’s also normal to feel some apprehension about what lies ahead as motherhood approaches.
Baby
Your baby is now about 11-13 cm long and weighs about 85-140 g. All of baby’s muscles are in place and getting stronger. Eyebrows and eyelashes have appeared, and the eyes are able to make small side to side movements and detect some light even though the eyelids are still closed. Around now, your baby’s hands can hold onto each other and grab onto the umbilical cord.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 17
Mother
By now, anyone who gives you a hug will feel the bulge in your lower abdomen. During the second trimester, most women gain between 5 to 6 kg. This week you may have one of the most exciting experiences of your pregnancy—feeling the baby move for the first time. Many women describe the feeling as “fluttering”.
Baby
Your baby is now about 13cm long and weighs about 140 g. The body grows bigger, so that the head is now more proportional to their body. Their sucking and swallowing reflex continues to develop. During this week and the weeks that follow, your baby will start to accumulate fat.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 18
Mother
Around this time, you might start to experience lower back pain. This can be common in pregnancy as the joints of your pelvis expands to prepare for the delivery of your baby and your growing abdomen throws your body off balance.
Baby
Your baby is now about 14cm long and weighs about 190 g. A mid-pregnancy ultrasound scan is often done sometime in the second trimester to assess growth and development. During this scan you might see your baby kick, flex, roll or even suck their thumb.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 19
Mother
At this point, you may feel your baby moving and kicking. Although your baby moves around quite a bit, you probably won’t be feeling it consistently until later in your pregnancy. Around now, you may notice your nails and hair are growing faster than ever before.
Baby
By now, your baby is about 15cm long and weighs about 225 g. This week sensory development is taking place as each of the senses (taste, smell, hearing, sight and touch) are developing in their specific areas of the brain.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 20
Mother
By now you are probably feeling the many turns and twists of your baby as they make your uterus into their own personal “exercise” room. Their growth is also causing your abdominal muscles to stretch and be pushed apart. You may also feel a dull ache in your lower abdomen as the ligaments supporting your uterus stretch. It’s also not unusual to feel light-headed when you move quickly from a sitting to standing position.
Baby
At the midpoint of your pregnancy, baby measures about 16 cm long and weighs about 280 g. Their developing skin will start to be covered by vernix, a white fatty substance that helps to protect their skin from the surrounding amniotic fluid.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 21
Mother
You can’t hide it any more—even strangers can tell that you are expecting! You may sometimes suffer from swollen ankles and feet, and occasionally the hands and face. As your baby grows and develops, you may also feel hungrier than before and crave for certain foods.
Baby
Your baby is now about 17cm long and weighs about 310 g. They are swallowing amniotic fluid each day and their digestive system is starting to function at a basic level. Their arms are finally in proportion to their legs. With their developing senses, they are more aware of your voice, as well as noise levels in your surroundings.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 22
Mother
Although you definitely have a sizable pregnancy “bump”. You’re probably feeling fine, though maybe a little more absentminded than usual. Some minor discomforts may include heartburns, sensitive gums that bleed when you brush and leg cramps.
Baby
Your baby is now about 20cm long and weighs about 450 g. Their body is getting larger every day. They now have well-developed lips and their tooth buds are starting to appear below the gum line. And since their taste buds are now developed, they can experience the flavours that cross through the placenta and the amniotic fluid they are swallowing.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 23
Mother
At this point, your size and your baby’s size are steadily progressing. Your health care professional will continue monitoring you to make sure this is so. You may feel more pushes against your belly as your baby starts moving more. Don’t be surprised if you experience clumsiness or are a little more forgetful—it’s all normal.
Baby
By this week your baby has reached over 500 g. Although they are heavier than previous week, their skin is still saggy in appearance. Their hearing is established and they can hear your heartbeat and voice. Their lungs are also forming, in preparation for breathing.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 24
Mother
As baby’s arrival draws closer, it’s common to experience both anxiety and excitement about the future. Other changes you might notice around this time include pigment changes in your skin. Stretchmarks may appear across your abdomen, hips and breasts.
Baby
Your baby is now about 22cm long and weighs about 680 g, but they still have a lot of growing to do. Their face is almost fully formed and complete with a full set of eyelashes and eyebrows. They have actually developed enough to have a chance of surviving outside your body with intensive care if it is necessary to deliver prematurely.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 25
Mother
A glance at your side view in the mirror reveals that your uterus has grown quite a bit in a few weeks. Your uterus is now about the size of a basketball. Your breasts have also grown substantially. What new symptoms might you be noticing? Leg cramps are common at night in the second trimester. Or perhaps you’re feeling a bit itchy—the natural result of your skin stretching.
Baby
Baby now weighs about 660 g as they continues to grow. Their lungs are not quite ready for full function yet and need some more time to develop. They are making breathing movements but no air is filling their lungs yet.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 26
Mother
Since your baby is now almost 36 cm long, you’re more likely to feel the full effect of their kicks. With your uterus and baby growing larger, you are now more prone to backaches, mild swelling in your ankles, and leg cramps. You might also experience “Braxton Hicks” contractions— tightening of the muscles of your uterus that occur irregularly as your body practices for labor.
Baby
Your baby continues to fill out, now weighing about 760 g. They will really be piling on the grams in the weeks to come. They are able to inhale and exhale and their eyes are starting to open and close.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 27
Mother
As your baby is growing quickly in this phase, ensure you maintain a nutritious diet. As you near the end of the second trimester, it’s common to feel somewhat stressed or restless—your body has been undergoing a major construction project, and you know that you still have one stage to go. Relax, and take it easy.
Baby
This week, your baby will likely be about 875 g as their skin changes from being transparent to opaque. You will notice that your baby now has a regular sleeping and waking cycle.
Pregnancy Tracker Week 28
Mother
By now, you might have gained about 5 kg during this trimester. You may have also noticed a change in the quantity of food that you consume. At your antenatal check, your doctor or midwife will feel your abdomen – your uterus will now be well above your navel.
Baby
In the past 4 weeks, your baby has doubled their weight, to about 1 kg. They are working on forming their fat layers and their fingernails are now formed.
