# Day 222: Hello, every day

> Thirty-one weeks and five days. Your baby will start recognising voices from outside the womb. Tonight your partner starts a one-minute evening hello.

- Series: Your seventh month of pregnancy, day by day (https://chorevia.com/learn/pregnancy-month-7), day 222 of 280, 31 weeks + 5 days
- Your baby this week: about the size and weight of a coconut; around 41.1 cm from head to heel
- Canonical URL: https://chorevia.com/learn/pregnancy-month-7/day-222
- Last reviewed: 2026-10-22
- Publisher: Chorevia (https://chorevia.com)
- Cite as: Chorevia. "Day 222: Hello, every day." Last reviewed October 22, 2026. https://chorevia.com/learn/pregnancy-month-7/day-222

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

Thirty-one weeks and five days. Today's note is mostly for the person who isn't carrying the baby, and it takes one minute a night.

## Your baby

Your baby is around 41.1cm long from head to heel, about the size and weight of a coconut ([NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-31/)). The NHS says they will start recognising voices outside the womb around now ([NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-31/)). They've been able to hear sounds and voices from outside for weeks already ([NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/2nd-trimester/week-21/)); recognising is the next step.

By birth, hearing is fully developed ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Developmental-Milestones-1-Month.aspx)). Nobody can promise what a newborn remembers from the womb. But there's no harm in making sure your partner's voice is one of the ones in the room most evenings, and some real pleasure in it.

## Your body

Fatigue is common at this stage, and the bump may make walking harder, even give you a bit of a "waddle" ([NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-32/)). Your balance may feel off as your centre of gravity shifts ([NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-29/)). If the tiredness hits hardest in the evening for you, that's one more reason tonight's job isn't yours. Sit, put your feet up, and let someone else do the talking.

## Try today

### The daily hello

- **Time:** 1 minute, every evening

1. Partner: pick a time that already happens every night, like after dinner or before lights out.
2. Sit close, a hand on the bump if she's happy with that.
3. Say the same short hello each night, in your normal voice. Your name, theirs if you've chosen one, one line about the day.
4. Keep it up until the birth, then say the same words the first time you hold them.

**Make it work:** Feeling silly is part of it. Say it anyway; there's no one to judge but the bump. Older siblings can take a turn too.

## Watch for

- **Normal:** your baby reacting to voices and noise, or going quiet for a while. The CDC says there's no set number of movements that counts as normal; a change is what matters. **Call your provider** right away if movement stops or slows ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/hearher/maternal-warning-signs/index.html)).
- **Normal:** nerves about the birth that come and go. **Call your provider** for scary, upsetting thoughts that don't go away, or losing interest in things you usually enjoy ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/prenatal/Pages/Depression-and-Anxiety-During-Pregnancy-and-After-Birth-FAQs.aspx)).
- **Normal:** rings feeling tighter by evening. **Call your provider** right away for extreme swelling of your hands or face ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/hearher/maternal-warning-signs/index.html)).

## For you

If you're the partner: much of this pregnancy has happened inside someone else. This minute is yours. It won't feel like much on the first night. By the fortieth, it'll be a habit you both look forward to.

And for her: rest while it happens. The NHS's advice for this stretch is to rest through the day ([NHS](https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-32/)), and evenings count.

## Sources

- NHS. "Week 31." Week-by-week guide to pregnancy, Best Start in Life. https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-31/
- NHS. "Week 21." Week-by-week guide to pregnancy, Best Start in Life. https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/2nd-trimester/week-21/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Developmental Milestones at 1 Month Old." HealthyChildren.org, 2026. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Developmental-Milestones-1-Month.aspx
- NHS. "Week 32." Week-by-week guide to pregnancy, Best Start in Life. https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-32/
- NHS. "Week 29." Week-by-week guide to pregnancy, Best Start in Life. https://www.nhs.uk/best-start-in-life/pregnancy/week-by-week-guide-to-pregnancy/3rd-trimester/week-29/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Depression and Anxiety During Pregnancy and After Birth: FAQs." HealthyChildren.org, 2019. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/prenatal/Pages/Depression-and-Anxiety-During-Pregnancy-and-After-Birth-FAQs.aspx
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Urgent Maternal Warning Signs and Symptoms." HEAR HER campaign, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/hearher/maternal-warning-signs/index.html