Ovulation
The first step toward getting pregnant is ovulation--the release of an egg. A woman must be ovulating in order to get pregnant. The other times of the month, she will not become pregnant because there is no egg present to be fertilized. Ovulation typically occurs midway through your menstrual cycle, typically falling somewhere around 14 days following the start of your last menstrual period, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Fertilization
The egg is released by the ovaries to be fertilized by the man's sperm. Sperm must come into contact with the egg, generally via vaginal sexual intercourse. However, any time sperm comes into contact with the vagina, it can possibly fertilize an egg. The sperm may reach the egg and try to penetrate it to fertilize it. If the sperm successfully fertilizes the egg, an embryo begins to form.
Development of the Embryo
Once the sperm has fertilized the egg, the two fuse together and begin to furiously divide; the DNA replicates. The cells continue to divide until they form a blastocyte, or a small clump of cells. The blastocyte affixes itself to the uterine wall and becomes a fetus, which grows for the 40 weeks of pregnancy.
