JUST like Chrissy Teigen’s babies, these Texas siblings were born in the same year but aren’t twins.
After five years of trying to have a baby, a couple was blessed with two within 25 days.
Before deciding to use a surrogate, Angela, 33, and Jason Owens, 35, tried to conceive for five years, both naturally and with IVF.
After finding 37-year-old Ginger Ken, who agreed to carry a child for them, they also decided to continue with IVF at the same time.
In February 2021, Angela underwent an embryo transfer while Ginger had hers seven weeks later, using the couple's fertilized eggs.
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Both were successful and the two women carried the babies alongside each other.
On October 29, 2022, Angela gave birth to a baby girl named Avery Le Owens at Baylor Scott and White Medical Center, in Frisco, Texas.
Her little sister, Sienna Ryan Owens, was born 25 days later at the same hospital, thanks to Ginger.
The story might seem somewhat familiar now, given that a famous celeb couple just went through a similar process.
Model Chrissy Teigen and her legendary artist husband, John Legend, welcomed baby Wren Alexander this June via surrogate, just five months after Chrissy gave birth to Wren's sister Esti Maxine.
"I've been following Chrissy and John's journey since the beginning so reading her post about Esti and Wren touched my heart,” Angela gushed.
After going through the same process, the Dallas, Texas local said she and her husband came up with a cute title for their kids.
"We call them ‘twiblings,’ like twins and siblings as they're so close in age," she revealed.
But their proximity in age doesn't mean their personalities are aligned.
"Even though they are similar in age, their personalities couldn't be further from each other.
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"Sienna is sweet and loves to cuddle, whereas Avery is very alert and is into everything!”
After tying the knot in 2017, Angela, who works in healthcare, and Jason, a data engineer, ditched birth control and started trying for a family.
But after six months and no pregnancy, they went to their local doctor for help.
That visit led them to a reproductive health specialist, who said the pair was “young and healthy” and advised them to continue trying for another six months.
The couple tried naturally for six months before being referred to Dallas IVF in Frisco, Texas, for private IVF treatment in August 2017.
Despite being hopeful and spending around $200,000, the couple experienced five miscarriages over the preceding three years.
By September 2021, they decided to look into surrogacy while also continuing IVF.
Angela said: ''Every time we did a test or had another transfer, we just hoped and prayed that we were one step closer to having a baby.
"Five years of trying takes its toll and by 2021, I didn't think I'd ever be a mom biologically, but I wasn't going to stop until we exhausted all options."
The couple began their own research into surrogacy and posted on surrogacy Facebook groups.
That’s when they were contacted by Ginger, a pharmacist technician, who lived just 30 minutes from them.
Following a Zoom meeting in June 2021, the pair knew right away that she was the surrogate for them because "she seemed like she was doing it for the right reasons.”
Eight months later, Angela and Ginger had embryo transfers within seven weeks of each other at the same clinic.
In March and April, medics confirmed that both pregnancies were a success and Angela and Ginger went on to have healthy pregnancies.
The proud mom of two said: "I didn't expect my final transfer to be successful and we didn't want to lose Ginger as our surrogate so we thought we'd go for it.
''When we found out we were expecting two babies within weeks of each other, I was cautiously optimistic for myself because of everything I'd been through, but I was so excited for Ginger.
"We were shocked, thrilled and there were a lot of tears!”
After making it through the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, Angela said she tried to relax but couldn’t ward off anxious thoughts thanks to previous miscarriages.
"I didn't tell our family until I was 20 weeks, and they had no idea about any of our fertility journey, so it was very emotional.
"I had the easiest pregnancy; no morning sickness, no weird cravings, and I even worked out every day until I was eight months along.
"When I got to 20 weeks I started to relax more, and having Ginger pregnant with me was very special because she's part of our family too.
''We talked every single day when we were pregnant and we went to all of Ginger's appointments — it was really exciting.”
Both women gave birth at Baylor Scott and White Medical Center, with Ginger's labor being two and half hours and Angela's lasting three days.
The "twiblings" are now eight and nine months old and love music, the family dogs, and bubbles.
Angela said: ''When we were able to hold our babies for the first time, it was the greatest feeling in the world.
"Sienna was premature so she stayed in the hospital for one week, but when we were able to bring her home to her sister, it was so special.
"Being a new mom is challenging, especially with two babies, but I love it.
"For so long, I never thought I'd be a mom so having our two beautiful girls is the best feeling in the world.”
Thinking about Chrissy and John’s journey, Angela said it was touching to learn about a public figure who went through the same thing.
"I was over the moon when I read her posts about Wren and Esti. They got their happy ending and so did we.
“I'm thankful every time I hold our girls, they're the best little girls anyone could ask for."
