Merry Christmas!

The little peppers and how they grew.

Well then. Ultrasound today, and everything is ship shape! Two boys. All body parts are present and accounted for, and we've got Boy A weighing in at 1 lb. 1 oz. and Boy B at 1 lb. even. Right on track.

Here's Boy B, who is not blowing smoke rings. That's apparently the umbilical cord. 

This one's a little harder to see the profile on, but Boy A currently has their fist to their chin, as though he's contemplating a right or left hook to Boy B for sitting on his face. 

Choice is power.

Behold the wrath of Laura's hormonal but perfectly allowable rage:

Booooo, Simmonds, Martin & Helmbrecht. Booooo. I called the office on a whim today to be sure I was getting the anatomical ultrasound Wednesday and wouldn't you know it I'm not. Because the doctor FORGOT. I assume doctors have more training than me and know their stuff, that's why we pay them the big bucks. I assume they have secretaries and fancy computer programs to remind them of when appointments are and what kind of appointments they should be. Also it irritates me when people with a webmd education self-diagnose and tell doctors what their problem is. In this case, however, I should probably kick myself for not asking questions earlier. But not for real because I'm pregnant.

We are moving our insurance dollars elsewhere ASAP. Put myself in for another practice and we'll see how quickly they can get me in. They are also affiliated with the closest hospital to our current location. Take THAT Simmonds, Martin & Helmbrecht. Boooooooooo.

Note: My panties are not in a bind because of gender. Gender, schmender. I am just irritated because every website, book, person and doctor you talk to give a very narrow window for this thing to occur- 18-20 weeks. Which I believe is because they're looking for other things. Possibly preventable problems. Which makes me want to howl with rage and gnash my teeth and stuff. RAWR.

*Update* I went and picked up a referral today and was able to get an appointment with a radiologist for Thursday at 1pm.

Belly shot two.

22.5 weeks, just before gender time! Let us know your gender guesses and preferences, and we'll see if the doctor obliges...

Week twenty two.

Shrimps

• Are supposed to be moving in a way I can at least feel them... am curious if I've chalked too much up to indigestion. Hmmm. For the guys, imagine laying in bed at night with a hand on your stomach trying to guess whether internal movements are coming from gas or creatures living inside of you. It's weird. Also not knowing where your organs are at, exactly.
• Are really digging ice cream. 

Laura

• Is now on par with Andrew's current weight. He's always said he should weigh more, but the only option I see is for him to gain sympathy poundage. Fortunately we got him some bacon and sausage at the grocery tonight...
• Is looking for energy/motivation which seems to have wandered off. Let me know if it wanders over your way.
• Continues to struggle with twin math. Reading through baby/pregnancy books is one thing, but trying to guess at what figures and facts mean in cases of multiple babies is tricky. 

Andrew

• Is becoming aware of the birthing process. When our friends had their baby this week, his comment was something along the lines of, "it's really weird to think that that baby was in her belly last time we saw them." Yep, that is how this works.
• Has been stressed with work a bit but is still super helpful and supportive!
• Is reading off angel and babylonian names to me as I type... don't think we'll be going with any babylonian names.

Week twenty one.

Oops, kind of skipped a week... we were all busy, right? Nobody missed it too much? We had an excellent holiday and wish we could skip all this work nonsense and go right into the next one. Also had a super fun time with the Vogel Sr's and PA friends this weekend.

Shrimps:

• Are demanding an increasing amount of food and not giving Laura any of it, apparently. 
• Have yet to kick noticeably but should happen soon!
• Will reveal their gender in two weeks or less.

Laura:

• Is eating tums like candy, or at least once a day instead of the never it used to be.
• Has gained a quarter of the recommended weight for twins, better than nothing!
• Is having some quality weird baby dreams. So far the twins have been redheads, a boy and a girl, misplaced in the hospital and grocery stores, lost in a WWII bombing and then found years later. The last one was a real tearjerker. 

Andrew:

• Is starting to introduce sweet potatoes and corn to his diet, which makes for more delicious dinners in this household!

House and stuff.

Well then. We're out of the apartment and have handed over the keys. All our MD belongings are in the house... whether or not they're still in a box still I'll leave a mystery. Between that and Thanksgiving posting hasn't been a super big priority, but I thought tonight I'd write some words for you to read.

Definitely not a fan of heartburn. Since when does water give you heartburn? Since you're pregnant is what. Since I have your rapt attention, there are several reasons for more heartburn during pregnancy. One is that your baby is squishing your stomach. Another is hormones(?). Drinking bunches can also make things slosh around more... ugh. I'm supposed to drink two or three liters a day. Ugh.