Children tend to deliver a steady stream of surprises, some pleasant and some not-so-pleasant, after they emerge from the womb. Then again, perhaps just as often, children start delivering surprises before their big premiere. Take this baby in Arkansas, for instance. The mother was several weeks into gestation on one child when she got an unexpected and extremely uncommon surprise: she was pregnant again. That’s right- another baby was conceived in her womb weeks after the first one.
Apparently, this is called superfetation. ‘Super’ indeed.
Other more common reproductive surprises include:
Multiples – “Yeah, you know how you were getting ready for one baby? Well, you’re having eight. Isn’t that wonderful?” As a father of twins, I can tell it is wonderful… after three long years of sleeplessness and high stress.
Gender Oops – “You know how you bought all those pink onesies and painted the room pink and bought the entire Barbie collection? Well, it’s not a girl after all. Of course, that means it’s a boy.” Despite advances in ultrasound tech, this continues to happen.
What surprises have you or someone you know had in conceiving children?
Tags: childrearing, family
