A pregnancy calendar is a personal calendar that you use to follow the development of your baby from conception until birth. A pregnancy calendar helps you know when to expect what during your pregnancy, and helps you see the changes taking place in your baby and you. It can make pregnancy far easier if you know what to expect, and when.

Most pregnancy calendars are found online, and most are free. You will see that your pregnancy calendar will be personalized to you, but it will have tips and advice on a healthy pregnancy that can be applied to anyone.

A pregnancy calendar typically does the following:

Follows baby's development.

When you sign up for a pregnancy calendar online you will fill in pertinent information such as your expected delivery date, and your last menstrual period. Then the system that you signed up on will give you a week by week look at your baby's development. Some online pregnancy calendars will have photos of baby growth, others will simply have descriptions. Either way it can help you see what is going on with your baby, and what is important that you do in order to keep your baby healthy. For example, during the first few weeks your baby's neural tube is developing, so you need to be sure to get a lot of folic acid to prevent birth defects. Most calendars will give medical information in order to keep you and your baby healthy.

It will give you indications of when you should start feeling your baby move. It will help you see when different things are growing, such as when they get their eyebrows, or fingernails. It will also help you figure out if there is a problem. For example, if your pregnancy calendar indicated that you should be feeling your baby move for over a week, and you still have not, you can call your doctor and discuss it with them, and have an ultrasound or tests done to ensure your baby is alright and that they are growing at the rate they should be.

Offers advice on healthy pregnancy.

Most pregnancy calendars will help you understand the ins and outs of pregnancy. The first thing your pregnancy calendar will have on it is a look at some of the variations of delivery to actual due date. Your calendar will help you understand that your due date is only an estimate - most babies are born between 38 and 42 weeks from the first day of their mom's last menstrual period. It also helps you see that only a small percentage of women actually deliver on their due date. By having a pregnancy calendar that shows the growth, and what things are happening with your baby during specific weeks, you will be less anxious to get that baby out, and more eager to let it grow properly.

It is going to also have tips each week to help you through the specific problems you might face, or get the specific things you need during that stage of your pregnancy. For example, during week 19 you might be feeling energized and good, but your calendar might have a reminder that your increase in energy is temporary, and that you should not overdo it.

Helps you see what is going on with your own body.

Most pregnancies are accompanied by discomforts, pains, aches, and more. A pregnancy calendar usually lists the specifics of when problems occur, and what problems there are. For example, during the first few weeks of pregnancy you will have hormonal changes that lead to morning sickness, congestion, etc. Your pregnancy calendar will indicate to you when that should start, and when it is typical to get past that stage. It will also have tips and advice for dealing with those changes. For example, it might recommend you have a box of crackers by your bed that you eat at least fifteen minutes before you get out of bed. It might also recommend you run a humidifier at night so you do not have to deal with the inconvenience of nose bleeds, and dry mucous membranes.

If you find that your symptoms or problems come way earlier, or last way longer than your calendar indicates that you may want to speak with your doctor. For example, if you have morning sickness at 23 weeks, your doctor may give you a prescription for phenegran, or zofran to help you get past the queasy stage.

The typical pregnancy calendar breaks down your trimesters and addresses some of the most common problems you may face during those weeks. It might explain swollen legs, or back aches, or constipation, and offer some great tips and advice. It will give you an idea of when you will start showing. It will give you an idea of how much weight you should be gaining and when. It is like a road map to your body and pregnancy, and can help you get through it with less stress and discomfort.

Gives advice for healthy fetal growth and healthy pregnancy.

Most pregnancy calendars will show you what is developing when and give advice for staying healthy during these stages of fetal growth. For example, it might offer tips for ensuring you get the right nutrients during bone growth, and it might offer tips for ensuring proper brain development, and more. Some calendars address things like sleep, diet, exercise, etc. The tips are often very useful. For example, they may show that during weeks 35-40 you should reduce the amount of exercise or intensity level of exercise so that you do not injure yourself or hurt your baby. At this point the baby is putting a lot more pressure on your pelvic floor, so it can be damaging to your body if you are not careful, lower impact exercise will become a necessity.

Gives advice for increased comfort during pregnancy.

The fact is that sometimes just knowing that what you are experiencing is normal will help you find comfort during your pregnancy. However, most pregnancy calendars are filled with useful tips for increasing comfort. For example, they may recommend at week 18 that you invest in a body pillow so that once you start showing, and your belly gets in the way of comfortable sleep you are already prepared with something to help the situation.

It might recommend in week 37 that you start wearing nursing pads. Some women will start leaking from their breasts as they get closer to giving birth. Following the tips offered on the pregnancy calendar could ease discomfort and eliminate or avoid embarrassment for you.

Helps you understand the trimesters.

A common term you'll hear throughout your pregnancy is trimester. A pregnancy is divided into trimesters, or three segments. The first trimester is from week 1 to the end of week 12, and there are things that are generally specific to that trimester. Your calendar will address them. The second trimester is from week 13 to the end of week 26, again, your calendar will address things that are specific to that time of growth. The third trimester is from week 27 to the end of the pregnancy.

As you can see pregnancy calendars can be very useful, if for no other reason they give you a dashboard of where you are, where you are going, and what you can expect. To create a pregnancy calendar that will work great for you, you will want to find a site that offers calendars, and fill in your specific information. Then you click on the week of pregnancy you are on, and read what it has to say. Check it each week to understand what you can expect for you and for your baby.

Some great sites for finding pregnancy calendars include the following:

http://parenting.ivillage.com/pregnancy/calendar : this site offers a typical pregnancy calendar with general advice broken down by the trimester. It has photos to accompany each stage of pregnancy, and helps you track your progress.

http://3dpregnancy.parentsconnect.com/ : This site is awesome for anyone who wants a pregnancy calendar as it allows you to create a 3D pregnancy calendar so that you can check how your baby is growing day by day and week by week. It is very exciting to be able to see an actual fetal picture of what your baby should look like at that stage of your pregnancy.

http://www.justmommies.com/pregnancy_calendar.php : This is a really easy to use pregnancy calendar that allows you to click on the week of pregnancy you are in to see what is going on, or to personalize the calendar so that when you access it, it automatically takes you to the week and stage of pregnancy you are at.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/pregnancy_calendar/pregnancy_calendar_intro.html : This is a great site for finding a useful pregnancy calendar. This calendar offers plenty of healthy pregnancy tips in addition to the update on growth and development.