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Whether identical or fraternal, twins often share common features like physical appearance, behaviors, and, most notably, a shared birthday.
However, these unique stories break the traditional notion of twin births, creating separate birthdays that give each twin a chance to celebrate individually and reflect on their extraordinary journey into the world.
Here are ten pairs of twins who broke the mold by being born in different months, years, and, in some cases, even different decades.
10. Joslyn and Jaxon Tello
Dawn Gilliam and Jason Tello, a couple from Pendleton, Indiana, were anticipating the birth of their twins on February 18, 2020. While they joked about the possibility of their twins being born on different dates, they received an even rarer surprise—their twins not only arrived on separate days but also in different months, years, and even decades.
On December 31, 2019, Gilliam visited Ascension St. Vincent Hospital, worried about a lack of fetal movement. Fortunately, there was no reason for concern. At 11:37 pm, their first twin, Joslyn Grace Guilen Tello, was born, weighing 4 pounds 11 ounces (2.1 kg) and measuring 17.9 inches (45 cm), making her the final baby born at the hospital in 2019.
Just 30 minutes later, at 12:07 am on January 1, 2020, her brother, Jaxon Dewayne Mills Tello, was born, weighing 4 pounds 4 ounces (1.9 kg) and measuring 18.1 inches (45.9 cm). He became the first baby born at the hospital in the new year.
9. Olive and Ashton Perry
Heather and Chris Perry from Lake Park, Minnesota, expected their twins to be born in May 2021. However, in February 2021, 25 weeks into her pregnancy, Heather's water broke while she was at work in Detroit Lakes.
Heather was hospitalized, and although labor didn’t begin until several weeks later, once it started, everything progressed swiftly. In fact, their baby girl, Olive, was born on February 24, 2021, weighing 2 pounds 4 ounces (1.02 kg), and her birth was so quick that her father, Chris, unfortunately missed it.
Baby boy Ashton, however, seemed to be enjoying his extra room and wasn’t in a rush to enter the world. The doctors decided to wait for his arrival, unaware that they wouldn’t be waiting just minutes or hours, but several days before he would be ready.
At one point, Heather even went into the NICU to hold Olive, all while still carrying her twin, Ashton, who wasn’t quite ready to make his appearance.
Finally, five days later, on March 1, 2021, Ashton arrived, meaning that not only would the twins celebrate their birthdays on separate days, but also in entirely different months.
8. Katie and Amy Jones-Elliot
Maria Jones-Elliot, 34, and her husband, Chris, from Glenmore, County Kilkenny, Ireland, were overjoyed to discover they were expecting twin girls during their seven-week scan. Although Maria's due date was set for September 21, 2013, at just 23 weeks and five days of pregnancy, she began feeling intense pressure on her abdomen and was advised by her doctor to go to the hospital.
After two days of labor, Maria delivered the first twin, Amy, on June 1, 2013, who weighed only 1 pound 3 ounces (0.5 kg). However, rather than her second twin, Katie, being born right after, Maria’s contractions stopped, and despite attempts to induce labor the next day, Katie remained in the womb.
The couple decided to wait and let nature take its course, but Maria described the situation as ‘achingly bittersweet.’ She shared, 'Amy was fighting for her life in an incubator, and Katie was struggling to survive in my womb.'
Against the odds, Katie grew stronger day by day in the womb. At 36 weeks and three days, Maria was induced again, and Katie was born on August 27, 2013, weighing 5 pounds 10 ounces (2.5 kg), 87 days after her sister.
9. Micah and Madelyn Miller
Just a few months after Kristen and Ian Miller, both 27, from Jefferson City, Tennessee, got married, they received the exciting news that they were expecting twins—one boy and one girl—due in June 2016.
Kristen’s pregnancy had been smooth initially, but in February 2016, at just 22 weeks, she began experiencing contractions during a church service. By the time she returned home, her water had broken.
Doctors used a combination of treatments and medications to halt Kristen’s labor, hoping to keep her pregnant until the 24-week mark, when the babies would have a higher chance of surviving outside the womb with proper medical support.
On February 14, 2016, at 24 weeks and one day, baby Micah was born, weighing just over one pound (0.4 kg). While Madelyn, Micah’s twin sister, was expected to be born shortly after, Dr. Kristina Shumard, a maternal fetal medicine obstetrician at UT Medical Center, understood that the longer Madelyn stayed in Kristen’s womb, the healthier she would be.
Dr. Shumard was determined to delay Madelyn’s birth as long as possible. Because the twins had separate sacs and placentas, the Millers were given the rare option of delayed interval delivery—a technique in multiple gestation pregnancies where the first fetus is delivered, but the remaining fetuses are not immediately born.
Kristen was prescribed strict bed rest and was unable to hold her son Micah for three weeks. However, 38 days after Micah’s birth, her daughter Madelyn finally entered the world.
6. Link and Logan Gorveatt
Holli Gorveatt’s twin boys, Link and Logan, were diagnosed with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) while in utero—a rare and serious condition affecting identical twins or other multiples.
When identical twins share a placenta, abnormal blood connections form, causing uneven blood flow between the fetuses. The donor twin gives away more blood than it receives, risking dehydration, malnutrition, and organ failure. Meanwhile, the recipient twin receives too much blood, making it prone to high blood pressure and other heart-related issues.
Fortunately, in September 2015, Dr. Martin Walker at EvergreenHealth Medical Center in Kirkland, Washington, successfully corrected the twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome by separating the twins' blood vessels, ultimately saving both babies’ lives—twice.
Holli went into premature labor just a week after the procedure due to the weight of the twins pressing on her cervix. Doctors had no option but to deliver baby Link on September 29, 2015, at just 23 weeks, weighing only 1 pound 2 ounces (0.5 kg). Unfortunately, he was so fragile that neither Holli nor Link’s father, Nick, could hold him, and he was placed in an incubator.
Despite Link’s early arrival, the separation of the twins allowed Logan to stay in the womb longer, giving him a better opportunity for normal development. Doctors had hoped Logan would remain in utero until his full-term due date of January 26, 2016, but when concerns about Holli developing an infection arose, Logan was delivered early.
Eighteen days after Link was born, Logan made his arrival at 1:53 am, weighing 1 pound 10 ounces (0.74 kg), which means the twin boys now celebrate their birthdays in different months—one in September and the other in October.
5. Carl and David Cowan
In January 2014, Elene Cowan and her husband, David, traveled from Saudi Arabia, where David works as an emergency room doctor, back to the Kansas City, Missouri area. Elene was 23 weeks pregnant with twin boys—Carl and David.
Just hours after their plane touched down, Elene and her husband found themselves at Research Medical Center. Elene wasn’t feeling quite right and suspected dehydration. At the hospital, doctors discovered that Carl’s amniotic sac was beginning to enter the birth canal, Elene’s cervix was starting to dilate, and she was experiencing contractions.
Despite the doctors’ best efforts to halt the labor with medication and other treatments, they were ultimately unsuccessful. About a week later, at 24 weeks and one day into her pregnancy, Elene gave birth to baby Carl on January 20, 2014, who weighed only 1 pound 6 ounces (0.62 kg).
After Carl’s birth, Elene’s obstetrician, Dr. Howard Schwartz, diagnosed her with an incompetent cervix, a condition where weak cervical tissue contributes to premature birth or the loss of a healthy pregnancy. To buy more time for baby David, Elene’s cervix was stitched shut. She was also given antibiotics, medications to slow labor, and put on complete bed rest.
By late March 2014, Elene’s labor became unstoppable again. Baby David was born on March 28, 2014, weighing 2 pounds 14 ounces (1.3 kg), entering the world 39 days after his brother.
The twin boys remained in the neonatal intensive care unit and were finally able to go home in May 2014, roughly one week after their original due date of May 11, 2014.
9. Rebekah Faith and Charlotte Grace Smith
After two years of struggling with infertility and several rounds of basic fertility treatments, in vitro fertilization, and a single embryo transfer, Courtney and Ken Smith from Stanhope, New Jersey, were overjoyed to not only become pregnant but to expect identical twin girls.
At first, Courtney’s pregnancy proceeded without complications, but around 32 weeks, she began showing signs of preeclampsia. This serious condition, which can arise after the 20th week of pregnancy, causes high blood pressure and can impair the function of organs such as the kidneys and liver.
By 36 weeks, Courtney’s obstetrician decided it was time to induce labor. At 11:49 pm on March 31, 2021, Rebekah Faith was born, weighing 4 pounds 9 ounces (2.06 kg). Then, just 17 minutes later, at 12:06 am on April 1, 2021, Charlotte Grace arrived, weighing 6 pounds (2.7 kg). Despite their close arrival times, the twins were born in different months.
Courtney shared, 'Rebekah is named after the biblical character Rebekah, who faced infertility and eventually had twins. We chose this name for our firstborn to symbolize the end of our own battle with infertility.'
3. Charlie and Layla Burgess
Hayley Burgess, 34, from Wirral, England, was eagerly awaiting the birth of her twins, Charlie and Layla. However, the twins had other plans, arriving nine weeks earlier than expected. By 9:10 pm on September 30, 2022, Hayley found herself at Wirral Women and Children’s Hospital.
Charlie wasted no time making his entrance, arriving at 11:30 pm on September 30, 2022. His twin sister Layla, however, made her appearance just after midnight, marking her birthday as October 1, placing her birth in an entirely different month.
2. Annie Jo and Effie Rose Scott
Kali and Cliff Scott of Denton, Texas, were expecting twin girls, but they weren’t anticipating the arrival of their daughters until January 11, 2023, when Kali had been scheduled for a cesarean section.
However, following a check-up on December 29, 2022, Kali was admitted early to Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital for monitoring of her blood pressure. Late on the night of December 31, 2022, the doctors decided it was time to proceed with a C-section.
At 11:55 pm on December 31, 2022, Annie Jo was born, making her the last baby of the year at the hospital. Just minutes later, at 12:01 am on January 1, 2023, Effie Rose was born, becoming the first baby of the year at the same hospital.
Though born only six minutes apart, the twin sisters will have an extraordinary birth story to tell—one that spans different days, months, and even years.
1. Evan and Brielle Gullickson
In March 2014, Alyssa and Scott Gullickson from St. Joseph, Minnesota, received the news that they were expecting. During their 20-week ultrasound, they discovered they were expecting twins, with a due date set for November.
On July 17, 2014, Alyssa's water broke, and two days later, on July 19, 2014, the first twin, Evan, was born at 23 weeks and five days, weighing only 1 pound 7 ounces (0.65 kg). Tragically, doctors found a hole in Evan's intestines, and the family was transferred to the Twin Cities (Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota) for his surgery, while Brielle remained unborn at the time.
Alyssa was placed on strict bed rest and did her best to delay the birth of Brielle as long as possible. Brielle was carefully monitored to prevent any distress, but at 26 weeks, Alyssa started having contractions and developed a fever, prompting the doctors to induce labor. On August 5, 2014, Brielle arrived 17 days after Evan. The twins were not only born in different months but also in different hospitals and counties.
The couple stayed at the Ronald McDonald House while their twins received care in the neonatal intensive care unit at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital. Four months after Evan’s birth, the twins were finally discharged and able to go home.
