Ian Alejandro Rubey is a 31-year-old trans man living in Puerto Madryn, Argentina. He’s a science teacher who enjoys soccer, activism and chronicling his pregnancy journey on his YouTube channel. 

In a heartfelt Instagram announcement, Rubey wrote, “Me embarco en un viaje que hace mucho vengo surcando, La Paternidad,” meaning, “I embark on a journey that I have been on for a long time, fatherhood.”

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He continues, sharing that before he decided to begin the process of fertility, and eventually pregnancy, he first had to consider the girl he once was. He speaks fondly of her, describing her as loving and free-spirited. 

He adds that despite the fact that she never had a father figure in her life, she has blossomed into a self-sufficient man who is ready to tackle parenthood and declares that he will never abandon his children. 

In an interview with Univision, Rubey describes the moment in which he learned that there were two hearts beating instead of one: 

“When I first saw the sonogram, both [forms] were really little, so when I saw there were two, I thought one was something else. But then my friend noticed that it really was two babies. She started laughing and getting emotional. And I started laughing too because I really was only expecting to give birth to one.”

With only about four weeks left until his due date, Rubey already has the baby names picked out: Manuel Amaranto and Shanay Almendra. To him, they represent generosity and love, which is the kind of head start he says he wants to give them in this world. 

To prepare for the challenges he’d face, he stated that the most important thing for him was to learn about other people’s stories. He explains that learning about a similar trans man’s story in Argentina and Puerto Rico really helped expand his mind. 

“I am not risking my masculinity, which I’ve forged in the past few years,” he assures. Thanks to the Gender Identity Law in Argentina that passed in 2012, Rubey was able to change his identification card to reflect his chosen name and gender. 

When asked about the possibility of a C-section, Rubey responded optimistically. “There probably will be a C-section since there are two babies, although we won’t know until the time comes.”