Sam Neill, 23, and dad Charlie Gray, 28, this year is a year they will truly never forget. They welcomed three very special little girls into the world – their identical triplets. When Ivy, Penelope and Bonnie were born on June 25 this year, they were absolutely ‘miracle’. That’s because it is believed that there is a one in 200 million chance the girls are identical triplets.
The Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex couple had their first tomography procedure back in March in the hopes that they would be able to hear their heartbeat in their happiness. Charlie said: “Our first scan was on March 4th. “She [Sam] barely showed up so we were a little nervous to look at it.” When we did the scan, the woman was said ‘I’ve never seen this in my 20 years of scanning women. She said ‘You don’t just have one, you don’t have two, you have three babies’.
I didn’t experience any symptoms, she claimed. I was extremely ill, but I just assumed it was that way. In retrospect, I believe it was caused by my hormone levels being three times greater.
At that time, the Covid-19 epidemic was quite complicated, almost no one wanted to go near the hospital, but everywhere we went was clean. This is a year many will never want to recall, but for us it was a miracle. The three girls were scheduled to give birth on September 17 but were admitted to the hospital on June 25—12 weeks before that date.
Penelope Louise Gray was born 2lbs 1oz, Bonnie Lee Gray was 2lbs 7oz and and Ivy Leanne Gray was the smallest at just 2lbs. Charlie and Sam were aware that the girls would need to spend two months in the hospital due to their preterm birth. Charlie remarked, “Seeing them for the first time was a terrific sensation. We saw them every day during their first two months in the hospital because they were born 12 weeks early.
Charlie and Sam were finally allowed to bring their daughters home on August 25, which gave the family a chance to meet their little miracles. “It was great to finally bring them home, it was emotional,” said Charlie.
The year 2020 is bittersweet. Looking back, we can see that that was the year we welcomed our daughters, and that year with Covid was unusual. “We’re excited to watch them develop and see their personalities.”
“It’s so special when they’re born. It’s lovely to finally meet them”.
