A gorgeous set of twin girls in Duluth just turned 6 months old. Nina and Nora are thriving.

One year ago, their parents announced to their families that they were expecting. Then, Taylor Whitaker and Tyler Larson found out about the twins.

“We were excited to have another baby. But two? We said, that’s going to be nuts!” Taylor recalled.

Doctors and ultrasound techs discovered the girls are monoamniotic twins, sometimes called mono-mono twins. They shared a placenta and amniotic sac.

It is a high risk pregnancy. “They told me it was a very rare and it’s going to very difficult,” Taylor said.

It meant many doctor appointments, and eventually, a nearly two month stay in the hospital.

Dr. Michael Kassing, an identical twin himself, helped care for Taylor and the twins. He explained more about the situation.

“There can be a number of issues, between the blood vessels and the growth of the babies. But the biggest thing you worry about is the babies getting entangled with each other and the cords,” he said.

Per the protocol for this type of pregnancy, Taylor checked into the new Essentia Health St. Mary’s Medical Center about 8 weeks before her scheduled due date.

“There were a couple of times that their heart rates decreased when I was on the monitor at the hospital. They thought they might have to do an emergency C-section,” she said.

A long wait, with some worry. But it was made easier thanks to the staff and nurses. “I developed some great friendships and relationships. And they were great with my other kids,” Taylor said.

Everything went smoothly. And on April 3rd, the girls arrived.

They did spend several weeks in the NICU, but are now doing so great.

That’s music to the ears of the folks at Essentia.

“I think the combination of the nursing staff, physicians, residents, midwives, and the NICU together really makes this the safest place to have a baby. It allows us to care for those high risk moms. And even though we do everything we can, sometimes, even if you do everything right, you don’t always have the great outcomes,” Dr. Kassing said.

That’s why Nina and Nora’s story is so important to share.

“It makes me feel like they’re miracle babies,” Taylor added. They are getting loved on by older siblings Amara, Kassius, and Quest.