Nationwide — Nyla Craft, an African American mom from Torrance, California, welcomed a rare set of mixed triplets earlier this month, with the three boys weighing a combined 19 pounds at birth. Elio, Elias and Enzo were born to her and her partner, Marco Bernal, on Aug. 18 at Kaiser Permanente South Bay Medical Center. The boys also arrived on their father’s birthday, adding another memorable detail to their arrival. Hospital officials called the pregnancy and delivery “especially notable” because of the babies’ unusual circumstances.
According to KTLA, the triplets were conceived naturally and were born full term without complications. They each arrived at a healthy weight, bringing their combined birth weight to about 19 pounds. That total is also close to the reported record for the heaviest set of triplets, although the hospital has not said that the boys broke any world record.
What makes the brothers particularly unusual is that they are mixed triplets. Two of the boys are identical twins, while the third is their fraternal sibling. In this type of pregnancy, two babies develop from the same fertilized egg after it splits, while the third develops from a separate egg and sperm. The result is a set of triplets in which two siblings share nearly identical DNA while the third does not.
The delivery also required a team of more than a dozen doctors and nurses from multiple specialties. They worked together to safely deliver the babies and care for their mother. Despite the challenges associated with carrying three babies, the pregnancy reached full term, and the newborns arrived without complications. The hospital described their condition as a remarkably healthy beginning for triplets.
The three boys have now brought the family to seven members. They join an older brother and sister, giving their parents five children under the age of five. Their arrival also means the family will share a unique birthday tradition, with all three newborns celebrating their birthdays on the same date as their father.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, triplets can develop in different ways. Fraternal triplets occur when three separate eggs are fertilized, while identical triplets happen when one fertilized egg divides into three embryos. Mixed triplets combine the two patterns, with two babies developing from the same fertilized egg and another developing separately. Elio, Elias, and Enzo fit that rare pattern, while their healthy full-term birth and combined 19-pound weight make their arrival even more unusual.