Welcome to the first stage of parenting: Growing your baby! Nine months may seem like a long time, but it goes quickly -- and you have important work to do during those months.

Hey, you're starting to get the hang of this.  Your body has stopped feeling so queasy.  You're no longer falling into bed each night at 7pm.  You're exercising, eating right, and you've gotten used to doing without that glass of wine at parties.  And, finally, you've made a decision you feel good about regarding your birth venue and medical assistance.  What's next?

Congratulations, you're on the home stretch! Only a few months until you hold your baby in your arms.  It'll be a busy trimester, but we encourage you to find time for movies, loved ones and plenty of sleep.

It may seem like you can wait to choose a hospital or birthing center.  But  this can be a circular process.  You may choose your health care provider and then find out that the hospital where she delivers babies has some policies you don't like, like mandatory removal of the baby for bathing and weighing.  You hear that the hospital across town doesn't have that policy, and in fact has a well-regarded birthing center.  That sends you back to the previous step:  What doctors and midwives practice at the hospital across town?  If it's early enough in the process, you can still switch providers. Here's your step by step guide to making this choice, from home birth to scheduled C-Section.

Your health care provider will monitor your baby's development and your health throughout the pregnancy, and you need to feel comfortable discussing anything with her or him.  But there are lots of friendly, competent doctors and midwives out there. The most critical factor in choosing one for your baby is the kind of birth you are likely to have with them. Here's your step by step guide to choosing the perfect doctor or midwife for you.

Great questions to start you thinking, from the Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative.

Letters relating to Pregnancy and Birth from ASK DR. LAURA, with her trademark answers: wise, well-informed, and always supportive.  If you don't find your question, click here to ask it. 

Go ahead, put your feet up and enjoy a cup of herbal tea. The accumulated experience and wisdom of generations of women is waiting for you.

Links to other pregnancy and birth websites we love, where you can do research about birth options, find out the rate of C-Sections and other birth interventions at your local hospital, find a midwife or doula, and talk with other pregnant and nursing moms.