D-Day approaches, so it's time to make a few practice runs to the hospital and prepare to meet your baby.
Week 37
Baby's length from crown to rump: 35cm.
Make a practise journey to the hospital with your birth partner, and have a tour of the maternity and labour wards. As your baby engages you’ll feel a relieving sensation known as the 'lightening'. The pressure on your ribs and organs will ease, making breathing and eating easier. You'll probably need to urinate more, though, as your uterus is pressing down harder than ever on your bladder.
Your baby is now 'finished' and ready to be born. If it's your first pregnancy, you're more likely to go full term than if you've had children before or are expecting twins.
Week 38 Baby's length from crown to rump: 35cm.
You might get false labour contractions that are nearly as strong as the real thing, but they don't become regular and disappear if you move about.
Your baby's building up green-black waste in its intestines called meconium. It's made out of cells shed from the intestine lining, blood and skin and the amniotic fluid it's swallowed. This is the first waste it will excrete. If it's a boy, the testes will have descended into his scrotum by now, although 1% of boys and 10% of premature boys have undescended testes that should descend in the first year. If they don't surgery is needed to prevent problems in later life.
Week 39 Baby's length from crown to rump: 36cm.
At the moment your baby's boosting its immune system with antibodies that you're passing it through your placenta. It's time to make arrangements for help during and after your hospital stay. You'll know when you're going into labour because you'll get strong contractions that get worse when you move around and more regular and frequent over time. Your waters will break and the bloody plug of mucus that has sealed your cervix will become dislodged. When this happens, contact the midwife or your hospital.
Week 40 Baby's length: 48-51cm.
Your official due date falls this week, so get ready! Make sure everyone involved knows your birth plan, but be flexible should events unfold differently to how you'd expected. They often do.
When you finally meet your baby, it's bound to look a bit strange. When it comes out it will be a blue, purple or pale yellow colour and covered in blood, vernix and possibly languno. The head may have a squashed appearance for a few days, and remember newborn babies usually have swollen genitals because of high levels of hormones. It will probably cry, but don't worry if it doesn't: it could be dazed as its system is flooded with hormones called endorphins after the ordeal of birth.
Week 41 If you run past your due date, you may get a 'non stress' test and other post date foetal checks.
If you're one or two weeks overdue, your doctor will discuss induction with you and check baby's size and heart rate to make sure all is well. Your baby's still putting on weight, so post mature babies can be quite cuddly. It may also have more hair than usual, no vernix covering and therefore have dry skin on its hands and feet. Consider an epidural if you are induced as induced labours are more painful.
D-Day approaches, so it's time to make a few practice runs to the hospital and prepare to meet your baby. 
