Being pregnant can be a lonely experience if you don't know anybody else who's going through the same thing. Having a friend or loved one you can commiserate with when you're dealing with morning sickness or swollen ankles can make the experience so much easier, not to mention more meaningful. That's why besties and sisters sometimes dream about having their babies at the same time.
One pair of sisters from Akron, Ohio recently had this dream become a reality when the siblings not only gave birth to their babies on the same day, but in the very same birthing tub!
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According to TODAY.com, Adrianna Kennard, 21, and McKayla Kennard, 24, even found out they were pregnant on the same day — but they never expected to go into labor at the same time, even though they joked about having "cousin twins" during their pregnancy.
McKayla, who's a home birth midwife, had her baby first. Her water broke around 4 a.m., and her son Kash was born just about an hour later in the dining room of the family home.
“'I pushed three times and he was out,' McKayla says. 'My mom had Adrianna on FaceTime so that she could watch.'"
Related: 7-Year-Old Girl Watches Baby Sister’s Birth and Her Reaction Is Priceless
While McKayla has two older children (Korah, 4, and Kinsley, 18 months), Adrianna is a first-time mom and says watching her sister give birth at home helped to put her mind at ease. Soon after her nephew was born, she started having contractions herself and went to the hospital, but doctors said she wasn't in active labor yet and told her she could either stay at the hospital or labor at home. Adrianna chose to go home...but she went to McKayla's house instead of her own so she could hug her sister and meet the new baby. By the time she got there, however, her contractions were coming so quickly that she knew she wasn't going to be able to make it back to the hospital.
Thankfully, the birthing tub had been drained and cleaned, and just needed to be filled with fresh water! Plus, since her sister is a midwife, she knew exactly what to do.
"'I was helping her with slowing her breathing and she was squeezing my hands,' McKayla says. 'When she was pushing, I was reassuring her that she was doing well and this is what her body was made for.'"
At 1:15 p.m., eight hours, after Kash was born, Adrianna gave birth to her daughter Rylan — and aunt McKayla caught the baby.
“The night before, we were doing squats on FaceTime and joking about going into labor together,” said Adrianna. “The fact that it actually happened is crazy."
Those "cousin twins" are definitely going to be best friends for life!
What Are the Benefits of Water Birth?
As Parents reported, "laboring in water, particularly during the first stage of labor, has become increasingly common. Choosing a water birth — or even just spending the first part of your labor in water — allows you to enjoy some of the advantages."
Among those advantages is decreased pain and less need for medication, "thanks to the relaxing of the muscles and tissue, as well as the buoyancy of the water." Women who give birth in the water have also been shown to have fewer tears in the first and second degree. Finally, water births can lead to shorter labors.
The practice definitely worked out for Adrianna and McKayla!
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