Twins welcome Leap Day baby sister
STANHOPE. Toddlers were born in different months three years ago.
Stanhope /
| 21 Apr 2024 | 07:32
Identical twins Rebekah and Charlotte Smith hold their sister, Sadie, who was born Feb. 29. (Photos provided)
Sadie Joy Smith was born on Leap Day.
They say lightning can’t strike twice in the same place. With the Smith family, it sort of did - in a very positive way.
Rebekah Faith Smith was born March 31, 2021, weighing 4 pounds, 9 ounces. Her identical twin, Charlotte Grace, was born a few hours later on April 1, 2021, weighing 6 pounds.
Their baby sister, Sadie Joy, was born Feb. 29, weighing 9 pounds, 13 ounces.
“When I was in the hospital with the twins, my husband (Ken) actually joked with the doctor, saying, ‘What if they’re born on different days?’ ” said their mother, Courtney.
“The doctor said they would be born way before midnight, but they weren’t. Becky came at 11:49. Noticing the time, I asked if I could wait 10 minutes before pushing the other one out to give them different birthdays. Doctor said OK and Charlotte was (born at) 12:06.
“I hemorrhaged and needed a blood transfusion, and the twins needed feeding tubes because they were a month early. You’d never know it now because they eat pretty much anything.”
Sadie’s due date was March 2.
“I actually wanted to have her on Leap Day because I thought it would be neat to give all my kids cool birthdays,” Smith said. “So I arranged it with the doctor. However, there was a good chance I could have had her on Leap Day anyway because I was already having regular contractions when I went to the hospital.”
At one month old, Sadie is sleeping through the night and tolerates her milk very well.
”She is a very easy baby, but maybe it’s just because it’s one baby instead of two this time. She ate and slept very well from the start,” Smith said.
“Since we brought Sadie home from the hospital, Becky and Charlie have been great at playing together while I tend to the baby, but I’m always sure to give them their own attention as well. I also get a lot of help from family too, which is wonderful.”
There is no family history of identical twins. “We joke that we got twins because so many people were praying for us when we struggled to get pregnant,” Smith said.
Describing the twins, she said, “Becky is the cuddle bug who loves to see how things work. She likes to make sure things are in the right place and is the shyer one of the two but isn’t afraid to stand up for herself.
“Charlotte likes art and singing and is the chatterbox of the two who loves to take charge.
“Both twins’ favorite toys are dolls. They love to play with ‘their babies.’ You can imagine they love to hold their baby sister.”