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Day 279 of 280 · 39 weeks + 6 days

The final install

Last reviewed · 3 min read · 6 sources · Plain-text version

Thirty-nine weeks and six days. The car seat is the first thing your baby rides in. Today it goes in rear-facing, in the back, tight to within an inch.

Size this week
about the size of a watermelon
Length this week
around 50.7 cm from head to heel
A man kneels in the back seat of a car tugging a rear-facing infant seat at its base while his heavily pregnant wife in a raincoat watches from the open door, overcast daylight.

Thirty-nine weeks and six days. Tomorrow is your due date. The one piece of gear that has to be right before you leave the hospital is the car seat, so today it goes in properly.

Your baby

A single small watermelon on a plain pale wooden table, soft window light.

Around now your baby is around 50.7cm long from head to heel, about the size of a watermelon (NHS). Their first trip is the ride home. The AAP's rule starts there: "All infants should ride rear-facing, starting with their first ride home from the hospital," and they should stay rear-facing as long as the seat allows (AAP). Rear-facing-only infant seats are typically for babies up to 22 to 35 pounds, depending on the model (AAP).

Your body

Back pain and pressure low in the bump are common now (NHS), which is a good reason for someone else to do the kneeling and tugging today. Your jobs on the NHS's week 39 list are gentler: pelvic floor exercises, and checking what you're entitled to for maternity leave and pay (NHS). If your leave dates and pay aren't confirmed in writing yet, that's one email.

Try today

  1. The final install

    Time: 30 minutes · Car seat in the guide

    1. Put the seat in the back seat, rear-facing, ideally in the middle (AAP). Never in front of an active passenger airbag (AAP).

    2. Install it with the seat belt or the lower anchors. Both are equally safe; use one, not both, unless both manuals allow it (AAP).

    3. Grip the seat at the belt path and tug. If it moves more than an inch side to side or front to back, it isn't tight enough (AAP).

    4. If you can, have a certified child passenger safety technician check it before the baby is born (AAP).

    Make it work:

    The infant seat is for travel only. The AAP says not to use it for sleeping or feeding outside the car (AAP).

Watch for

  • Normal

    earlier symptoms coming back in these last days (NHS).

    Call your provider

    for any vaginal bleeding, which the NHS lists as a sign to call about immediately (NHS).

  • Normal

    feeling short of breath, which is common in the third trimester (OWH).

    Call your provider

    right away for trouble breathing, chest pain, or a fast-beating heart (CDC).

  • Normal

    some queasiness coming back, which the NHS says can happen late on (NHS).

    Call your provider

    right away for severe nausea and throwing up, or if you can't drink for more than 8 hours or eat for more than 24 (CDC).

For you

If you're the partner: this job is yours, start to finish. You'll be the one buckling the baby in on the first ride home, with a nurse watching and everyone tired. Do it once today with nobody waiting. The AAP's reason for getting the seat checked before the birth is simple: "a safe ride home from the hospital" (AAP).

And if you're the one who's 39 weeks and six days: tomorrow is a date on a calendar, not a deadline. Sit in the passenger seat today and let someone else do the work.

Sources

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.

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