Washington mom gives birth to three babies within a year — and oddly enough, they are not triplets

Stephanie Hansen, a single mom in Washington state, welcomed three baby girls of her own in 2020. People will assume that Hansen's daughters are triplets, but they're not. 

Daphne came first. She was born on January 28. A little more than 10 months later, on December 8, the infant was joined by twin sisters Rubie and Penelope, according to TODAY. Now you know how she's had three kids in a year. 

“It’s total chaos,” Hansen, 32, said, of having three toddlers. “But it’s the best chaos.”

While Hansen was aware she was pregnant during the first one, the second came as a shock to her, since it happened in a fairly new relationship. “In order to get on birth control, I had to take a pregnancy test,” Hansen recalled. The rest, as they say, is history. 

But, Hansen just had a baby, so how did she get pregnant almost immediately? Well, Dr. Christine Greves, an OB-GYN at Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies in Orlando, Florida, says that ovulation can return as soon as six weeks after a baby is born.

“After pregnancy, women aren’t necessarily cognizant of what their cycle is,” Greves explained. “But if you got pregnant once, it’s possible to get conceive again, even if you don’t think you’re ovulating.” And that is exactly what happened to Hansen. 

"I was in a newborn fog, and [then] there was the excitement of this new relationship," she said. "I was just adjusting to everything." But, when she found out she was expecting again, Hansen was a bit worried about how her older daughter would handle the situation. Also, she was unsure if she would be able to handle back-to-back pregnancies and babies. 

“I felt awful that she wouldn’t have one-on-one time with me anymore,” she said. “There was definitely some initial sadness.” 

But the day Hansen brought home Rubie and Penelope, her fears went out the window. “All Daphne wanted to do was touch them,” Hansen said. Daphne is now 2, while Penelope and Rubie are 15 months old. The three siblings are inseparable. 

“They are the Three Musketeers,” Hansen said. “They’re on the same schedule. They eat, bathe and play together. They share a room.”

While Hansen and the twin's father are no longer romantically involved, they continue to co-parent together, she revealed. “When we broke up I was devastated,” she confessed. “But I said to myself, ‘I’ve got this. We’re not going to sit around in our pajamas crying. We can sink or swim.’”

And Hansen, being a strong woman, chose to swim. “It’s not always easy,” she said. “But I am the happiest I’ve ever been in my entire life. These kids are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”