Parenting can be full of surprises. Occasionally, those surprises come in the form of twins.

So when Frankie and Britney Alba of Tuscaloosa, Ala., had their twin sons, Luka and Levi, their surprise turned into double the love for the two little boys.

But for the Albas, in addition to twice the love, they got double the surprise when Britney realized she was pregnant yet again, after the boys were just 6 months old. 

Shocked, but excited, the pair set up an ultrasound and hoped for a healthy baby. 

What they got was an ultrasound tech pointing out not one, but TWO more babies on the screen.

Britney, a 27-year-old teacher, and her 25-year-old firefighter husband, immediately laughed at the technician.

Britney said, “And we start laughing because we think it’s a joke. And she’s like, ‘No. I wouldn’t joke about this. There’s two.’” 

The stunned couple found out shortly after, that the two little girls shared one placenta and amniotic sac, something that is known as MoMo (monochorionic/monoamniotic) twins. The high-risk pregnancy only occurs in fewer than 1 percent of births in the United States.

The family requested prayers for the unborn girls, and went through close watch as the pregnancy progressed.

Dr. Rachel Sinkey, an assistant professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, said, “While extremely rare, MoMo twin pregnancies have a high risk of fetal complications. They share everything except umbilical cords, which can easily become entangled in a single sac. Unfortunately, there is a high rate of stillbirths associated with MoMo twins.”

At 25-weeks pregnant, Britney was admitted to the hospital where she stayed for more than 50 days.

“It was nerve-wracking to think about the journey ahead of me and being away from my boys for several weeks. But I knew I had a village at home and would be in great hands at UAB, which calmed my worries,” she said.

Thankfully, Lydia and Lynlee Alba were born at 32 weeks, healthy and safe. The twins stayed for four weeks at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Regional Newborn Care Unit, and went home shortly before Christmas.

Frankie and Britney Alba of Tuscaloosa, Ala., hold their second set of twins. Photo by the Alba family

The family said having two sets of twins has changed very little for them. “Before it was like ‘how are we going to have two babies,’ and now it’s like ‘two babies, that’s nothing.’ It sounds like work but we love it. It’s just become a new normal and it’s good,” Britney said.

People tend to make a fuss when the Alba family goes out, but they don’t mind. Britney shared, “People gawk at us when we’re out in public. I used to get stopped all the time when it was just Luka and Levi — you know, people asking, ‘Are they twins?’ Now it’s like a circus. Everyone wants to get a look!”

Enjoy the family’s growing family in the video below.

Sources: My Positive Outlooks | People