5. =Increased discoloration= of the colored parts of the skin is another early symptom of pregnancy. In addition to the deepened tint of the nipples and the circles around them, a dark streak appears upon the lower part of the abdomen, extending upward toward the umbilicus, or navel. There are also the yellowish, irregularly shaped blotches which sometimes appear upon the face and neck; dark circles under the eyes and pinkish or bluish streaks on the abdomen. 6. “=Quickening=” is the name which is commonly given to the mother’s first feeling of the baby’s movements. It occurs about the eighteenth or twentieth week, and is regarded by some doctors as a positive sign of pregnancy and by others as merely a possible sign. The sensation is compared to a very slight quivering, or tapping, or to the fluttering of the wings of a bird as it is held in one’s hand. Beginning very gently, these movements grow more vigorous, as time goes on, until they become very troublesome toward the latter part of pregnancy, amounting then to sharp kicks and blows. Women who have had children can usually distinguish between quickening and the somewhat similar sensation caused by the movement of gas in the intestines; but a woman pregnant for the first time may be deceived. There are many other possible symptoms of pregnancy, but their value is very uncertain and as we have seen, even the ones described above are not entirely dependable. But if you have missed two periods; if your breasts have grown larger and firmer; if your nipples are stiffer and more prominent and you can squeeze colostrum from them, you may be reasonably certain that a baby is coming. The =probable signs= of pregnancy are more apparent to the doctor than to the expectant mother, but there are two which you may easily detect: 1. =Enlargement of the abdomen=, which is a very important sign, may be noticed about the third month. At this stage a rounded mass may be felt in the abdomen which steadily increases in size as the weeks and months slip by. Rapid enlargement of the abdomen in a woman of childbearing age may be taken as fair, but not positive, evidence that she is carrying a baby. However, complete reliance cannot be placed in this sign, since it is possible for the abdomen to be enlarged by a tumor, by dropsy, or by fat. 2. =Painless contractions of the uterus= (or womb, within which the baby lies) begin during the early weeks of pregnancy and occur at intervals of five or ten minutes throughout the entire period. The expectant mother may not be conscious of these contractions during the early months, but later she can detect them by placing her hand upon her abdomen and feeling the uterus, beneath it, grow first hard and then soft, as it contracts and relaxes. But the probable signs of pregnancy, like the possible symptoms, may occur in women who are not pregnant, and accordingly the appearance of any one of them alone, is not of great significance.