The Belly Popped

On our vacation to Florida after two days, my belly POPPED! I finally fit into maternity shirts and people on the street rubbed my belly and passed along their congratulations. I suppose it is about time at 22 weeks, but it's a little strange and I'm just feeling chubby.

The girls are kicking up a storm and we realized over our babymoon that they are night partiers. They love loud music and to dance around after dinner, which is actually quite painful to Momma's right ribs (they feel very brusied inside). I can now feel their dancing on the outside of my belly--David also felt their first real kick on December 30th (btw, which is the date David proposed in 2005).

The girls are growing -- they are 11 inches long and almost 1 pound. They are starting to look like miniature newborns. The lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and they are even developing tiny tooth buds beneath their gums. Their eyes have formed, but their irises still lack pigment. Inside their bellies, the pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.