KEY POINTS:
"We're going to have a birthday. It's only one sleep," Breanna Greaney confided yesterday. Added twin sister Alyssa: "Mine's after Breanna's - five more sleeps."
Described by their parents as "little miracles", the Oamaru girls, born five days apart, have accepted their unusual situation as they prepare to celebrate their fifth birthdays.
Breanna was born on January 23, 2002, at 26 weeks, but Alyssa did not arrive for a few more days.
When the twins' mother, Sharon Greaney, went into labour for the first time, she was put on a drip at Oamaru Hospital to try to stop the premature birth. She was transferred to Dunedin Hospital later in the day and Breanna was born naturally that night, weighing just 810g.
Mrs Greaney and her husband, John, waited for the second baby to arrive, but nothing happened.
After much debate and research, hospital staff decided to wait and see what happened.
Five days later, Mrs Greaney went into labour again and Alyssa was delivered by caesarean, weighing 950g.
The girls were not much bigger than their father's hand.
When they finally arrived home from Dunedin three months after their birth, their story attracted nationwide interest.
Yesterday, the twins chatted about their forthcoming birthdays, with a small celebration planned for Breanna today and then a "slightly bigger" fairy-themed party for both girls on Alyssa's birthday.
They wanted a mermaid birthday cake, which was proving a challenge for their father, even though he owns the Peter Pan Bakery.
While they are not identical, most people have difficulty telling the twins apart. Breanna has a slightly more rounded face and a chipped tooth.
Mrs Greaney stopped dressing the girls identically when they were about three and they started choosing their own clothes. Yesterday, however, they both wore white dresses with pink trim.
- OTAGO DAILY TIMES
