Whoa! Identical Twin Sisters Give Birth at the Exact Same Minute
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I’ve never believed in coincidences—more random fate and happenstance. Well, this story is pretty much changing my mind.
Identical twins Sarah Mariuz and Leah Rodgers say their connection has always been “magical,” “odd,” and “hard to explain.” But when the sisters gave birth not only on the exact same day, but at the exact same time, even they couldn’t believe it.
On June 30 at 1:18 a.m., Mariuz and Rodgers both welcomed their firstborn children. It was actually Rodgers who gave birth first, to a boy named Reid Joseph in Denver, Colorado. Then one hour later, exactly, Mariuz gave birth to baby Samantha Lynne, in La Jolla, California. So with the time zone difference, the babies’ time of birth was the same.
"When my sister's husband got the text about Reid being born at 1:18 a.m., he apparently shouted at the doctors; he couldn't believe it!" the Colorado twin told People magazine.
The similarities in their journeys to baby started at the beginning of their pregnancies. “We didn't plan being pregnant at the same time,” Mariuz admitted. But the sisters planned to tell each other their happy news on the same day, around Thanksgiving last year.
"I wanted it to be a surprise, but when she showed up at the door—it was the funniest thing—I opened the door, welcomed her into the home, but as soon as I saw her, I knew she was pregnant, too," Rodgers, whose due date was four days before her sister’s, recounted.
Meanwhile, Mariuz who didn't want to steal her sister’s thunder, let her older-by-11-minutes sister share her news first. "I wanted Leah to have her moment of sharing her news, rather than me just saying, 'Me too!'" she told Today.
When the twins learned they really were both pregnant for the first time, Rodgers says, “I was like 'Oh my gosh, shut up!' We stood there and giggled, and our family was in complete shock. It's just one of those things that's totally possible, but when it's confirmed, it's so crazy."
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Another crazy fact about the sisters’ births is that Rodgers, who was the tomboy twin growing up, had a son, and her sister, who was girlier, welcomed a daughter.
But no matter their babies’ genders, the sisters say they can’t wait for their children to grow up together. "The adventure will only continue as our babies share the same birthday like we did!” Rodgers said.
Now don’t even tell me you don’t believe in coincidences now, too!
Melissa Willets is a writer/blogger and a mom.