A MUM has told how all four of her daughters were born on the same day ….in amazing odds of 17 billion to one.
Kristen Lammert’s four pregnancies were all naturally conceived and all had different due dates.
Yet her four daughters Sophia, nine, Giuliana, six, Mia, three and four week old Valentina all arrived on the 25th August, all sharing the same birthday.
“They were all conceived at different times, it wasn’t the annual Christmas party date,” says Kristen, who lives with husband Nick, 36, in South Carolina.
“My last two daughters were premature, so they weren’t even due for weeks, yet they managed to make their appearance on their sisters’ birthday too.”
The couple had discussed starting a family and always wanted either three or four children, and they were thrilled when they discovered Kristen was pregnant with their first baby in early 2015.
“We had met in 2009 whilst we were both working as pirates at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom,” Kristen, 35, recalls.
“We started dating and then we married in October 2014.
“I’m one of three siblings and Nick is an only child, so for different reasons we both wanted to have a big family.
“When I fell pregnant with Sophia we were both delighted.”
Sophia was born on 25th August 2015, and when she turned two, the couple decided to try for a second baby.
She fell pregnant at the beginning of December 2017 and was given a due date for the end of August, but never imagined it was going to be on Sophia’s birthday.
“We were so shocked when I actually gave birth on the 25th August after all that,” she says.
“To have both daughters with the same birthday was such a coincidence. We couldn’t believe it.”
When Kristen fell pregnant with their third daughter Mia, her due date was the middle of September, so the couple never imagined they would have a third daughter on the same day.
But Kristen started to suffer with hypertension – which is a pre-cursor to the life threatening condition pre-eclampsia – and it caused her to go into labour five weeks early.
“They had to break my waters as I’d gone in to early labour,” recalls Kristen.
“But I went into labour on the 23rd August, so I never imagined that she would be born on the girls’ birthday.
“But I was in labour for 36 hours, which meant that she was born on the 25th too.
“By now, Nick and I really couldn’t believe it. We didn’t know anyone else who had ever had three girls born on the same date.”
The couple were thrilled with their three daughters, but decided to have one more baby to make their family complete.
“We were looking forward to actually having a birth date different from the 25th August this time,” Kristen says.
This time when she fell pregnant, again the due date was the end of September.
They didn’t think they could possibly have another premature baby, but when Kristen was 35 weeks pregnant on the 23rd August, tests showed that she was developing the more serious stage of pre-eclampsia.
Fate definitely played a part in it
Kristen Lammert
Kristen explains: “I had a dull headache first and I went to the hospital to get checked out, but I was so convinced it was nothing, that I didn’t even pack an overnight bag with me, as I was so convinced I would be sent home again.
“But it progressed from mild to severe very quickly, and then the next day I lost my vision.
“Doctors said I would have to give birth as I had a risk of a stroke or a seizure because of the pre-eclampsia.
“It was so scary, my only thought was I had to have this baby – I didn’t want to leave my other three daughters without a mum.”
She was induced on the 23rd August, and again her body went into slow labour, and eventually she gave birth to Valentina on the 25th.
Pre-eclampsia is a condition that affects pregnant women, usually after the 20-week mark or straight after their baby is delivered.
Early signs include having high blood pressure (hypertension) and protein in their urine (proteinuria).
Mild pre-eclampsia affects up to six per cent of pregnancies, while severe cases develop in up to two per cent.
The exact cause of the condition is currently unknown, but it’s thought to occur when there’s a problem with the placenta.
There are also several factors that increase the chance of developing the condition, including having a family history of it, being over 40 or expecting multiple babies.
“My body seems to have its own way of doing things – and I slow labour for 36 hours, and then suddenly everything speeds up and the baby is born,” she says.
“Fate definitely played a part in it.
“There was no way that her three sisters were all going to share the same birthday, and let Valentina be the odd one out.
“I felt sorry for the girls having to celebrate their birthday in hospital so we got pizzas in the hospital room, and told them we were having a pizza birthday party.
“And when Valentina arrived a few hours later, it really was the best birthday present that any of the girls could have asked for.
“Sophia actually wished on a star a few days before her birthday that her new sister would arrive on that very day. So her wish certainly came true. She was over the moon.”
The couple have decided their family is definitely complete now.
“Pre-eclampsia can get worse with each progressive pregnancy,” explains Kristen.
“So it wouldn’t be safe for me to try and get pregnant again. But anyhow, our family is complete now with four girls.
“And it’s an easy one for birthday parties coming up as we only have to do it one day a year.
“All the girls have been born on the same day, exactly three days apart.
“We have been told the odds are 17 billion to one, and I certainly have never heard of it happening before.”
