What's happening when you're 31 weeks pregnant? This week, your baby finally comes to his senses. That’s right, all five senses are now operational. Even though your little one is just over 3 pounds and only 16 to 18 inches long, he’s now prepared to fully experience the world that waits just outside his quiet cocoon.
His eyes can now perceive light with fully functioning irises that dilate and contract. And those ears, though tiny, not only can hear, they can distinguish sounds. Studies show that fetal heart rates actually speed up and slow down in response to different music. And while there’s no air underwater for your little minnow to breathe in, his nose is ready for smelling.
And sniff he does, getting a sense of your scent from the amniotic fluid that passes through his nasal passages. Once he emerges, those first real inhalations of air will take in your special mommy aroma, further imprinting it as the one closest to his heart and helping him feel as at home in your arms as he did in your womb.
He’s also exploring with his new senses, playing with his nose, toes, umbilical cord, and your uterine walls to hone his sense of touch. And by opening his little mouth, and tasting and sucking his thumb, he’s getting ready for the good stuff that’ll be coming down the pike in just a few short weeks.
Now that his brain is processing the barrage of signals coming in from his senses, cranial connections are multiplying at an astonishing rate. Cerebral development is in high gear and will crank along at breakneck speed for the next several weeks, even after your budding genius has made his grand entrance.
Did You Know?
Will there be sex after the baby? Studies show that—on average, first-time parents have sex two to three times per month two months after the birth of their child. By the sixth month, they increase their rate to three to five times per month. Interestingly, parents with two or more children have sex an average of three to four times per month two months after delivery, and four to seven times per month at the six-month mark.
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