Week 41: your baby is the size of a quokka

Overtime. Your fetus now weighs about 3.6 kg, the weight of a quokka. About one pregnancy in ten reaches week 41, so you are in good company, and so is your baby's animal: the quokka, a cat-sized wallaby relative from a few islands off Western Australia and a handful of mainland pockets, is famous for looking like it is permanently smiling.

The quokka has a fitting trick for an overdue week. Females can hit pause on pregnancy. Through a process called embryonic diapause, a quokka can hold a fertilised embryo in suspended animation for approximately five months, ready to resume development the moment conditions are right or a previous joey is lost. Your baby, by contrast, has clearly decided the waiting is nearly over.

Babies born in week 41 are considered late term and are usually healthy. Your care team will simply keep a closer eye on things like fluid levels and the placenta to make sure everything stays on track.

Meanwhile, inside you

Your fetus this week is well developed and simply continuing to gain a little weight while they wait for labor to begin.