A same-sex couple who were pregnant at the same time both got to experience the gift of childbirth when they each gave birth just two days apart.
Married couple Renee and Anna McInarnay, who used in vitro fertilization (IVF), welcomed two baby girls in a two-day period in Mississippi.
Renee, 36, welcomed their first child, Emma Reese McInarnay, in Hattiesburg on Oct. 13. Two days later, her wife, Anna, gave birth to their second child, Avonlea Grace McInarnay.
“I held my breath until Avonlea was born,” Renee told People. “I was so thankful and so in love with Emma when she came — Anna and I both were. She was really our rock when Anna was giving birth. I kept holding Emma up and she was our champion. Until I heard Avonlea cry for the first time, I couldn’t really let go. Then there was this relief of having our family safe.”
As their story went viral on social media, Anna said they’ve been flustered trying to keep up with two newborns.
“It’s been really overwhelming trying to get the girls on some type of schedule. But we’re doing really well because our moms are here to help,” Anna told People. “We’ve had a really sweet time together. Babies are magic.”
Renee and Anna got married in 2017 and had undergone IVF treatments in New Orleans to start their family.
In January, facility staff reached out to the couple with the happy news.
“They said, ‘Anna, you’re gonna wanna sit down’ — because I’m the more excitable one,” Anna said. “They said, ‘Anna you’re pregnant and so is Renee.’ I’ll just never forget it. We screamed and jumped up and down and we were hooting and hollering. We just hugged each other and cried.”
Photos from their maternity shoot quickly became a social media sensation.
“We really hesitated at first because we didn’t want to deal with the inevitable trolling and disparaging comments that would be made about a same-sex couple,” Renee said. “Then we thought, ‘You know, it would probably be really good and powerful.’”
And they said their newest family members are already getting along well.
“Avonlea, we call her Avi, she is our very nosey, very alert, baby. She loves for people to look at her and talk with her or play music or sing over her. She’s going to be our conversationalist, for sure. She’s already a little people person,” Anna said.
“Emma is our calmer baby. She loves to just snuggle up and, if you’re holding her, loves to go to sleep. They’re very sweet and funny together. They’re like two little old ladies.”