What To Expect At Week 23
Turn on some tunes and sway to the music. With their sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance the night away. And now that they are more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about the size of a large mango), you may be able to see them squirm under your clothes. The blood vessels in the lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby’s increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing them for their entry into the outside world. Loud noises become familiar now- such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner, and they probably won’t faze them. You may notice that your ankles and feet are starting to swell a bit in the coming weeks and months, especially at the end of the day, or during the heat of summer. Sluggish circulation in your legs, coupled with changes in your blood chemistry during pregnancy, can cause some water retention. Your body will get rid of the extra fluid after you have your baby, which is why you’ll pee frequently and sweat a lot in just a few days after delivery.
