Couple Says Rare Identical Triplets Are 'Blessing'

Thomas, Oliver, and Finnegan were born Oct. 6 in Maryland
By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 23, 2015 5:20 PM CDT
Couple Says Rare Identical Triplets Are 'Blessing'
Thomas and Kristen Hewitt hold their three sons, identical triplets, at Greater Baltimore Medical Center.   (Courtesy of Greater Baltimore Medical Center via AP)

What Kristen and Thomas Hewitt assumed was one baby turned out to be a Costco three-pack of identical boys, the Baltimore Sun reports. Thomas says it was "pure joy and shock" during the first sonogram, according to CNN. The rare identical triplets were delivered Oct. 6 at the Greater Baltimore Medical Center in Maryland.The couple's doctor says he hasn't seen the birth of identical triplets in more than 30 years of working at the hospital, the Sun reports. Out of 3.9 million US births every year, only 4,300 are sets of triplets. And only 10% of those are identical. "We take the triplets as not only a blessing, but also a challenge that we're most certainly up for," CNN quotes Kristen.

Little Thomas, Finnegan, and Oliver were born six weeks early and spent two weeks in intensive care, the Sun reports. The trio didn't even weight 12 pounds put together when they were born. But according to CNN, their doctor says they are in "excellent condition." Now the Hewitts are faced with the reality of raising three identical boys. "We want to run things like a small army and be really regimented," Thomas tells the Sun. "In reality, it'll be more like a pirate ship complete with mutinies." Until the babies are old enough for unique haircuts, the couple says they'll be telling them apart by color-coded clothes and strings on their wrists and ankles. CBS News reports the Hewitts will be writing a blog to document their rare triplet adventure. (More uplifting news stories.)

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