Family who have had a set of IVF triplets - each born two years apart - celebrate their first Christmas together
- 5 months ago
A family who had a set of IVF triplets - each born two years apart - are celebrating their first Christmas together.
Karen and James Marks are in the midst of preparing for their family's first Christmas Day with their three children - Cameron, five, Isabella, three, and Gabriella, 17 months.
The three youngsters are considered triplets as they were conceived on the same day - and at the same time - through IVF, from the same batch of embryos.
After Karen gave birth to Cameron on September 1, 2018, the couple kept their viable embryos frozen so they could add to their family later, with Isabella born on September 15, 2020, and Gabriella born on July 3, 2022.
With three children at home, Karen, 36, and James, 38, now have their hands full but feel like the luckiest pair in the world after their long journey to welcoming their triplets.
Karen, who lives with company director James and their three kids in Taunton, Somerset, said: "This is really our first proper Christmas all together as Isabella was in hospital last year and got out on Christmas Day.
"The kids are really excited, they ask me every single day 'Is it Christmas yet?'.
"The magic of Christmas for the kids is what it is all about!".
Karen said they are holding Christmas Day at their home, with Grandma and Grandad visiting too.
She said: "Grandma and grandpa will be over on the day with more presents and for lunch.
"I don't know where they're all going to go - it's nuts!".
When speaking about the trials of IVF, Karen said the pair feel "so incredibly lucky".
She explained: "It feels so great to have all three of our children now.
"Some people go through IVF and sadly don't even get to have one baby, and we've managed to have three, so we just feel so lucky.
"Gabi was our last embryo, so she's our last baby now. I knew I wasn't done before Gabi, so I told my husband if it didn't work, then we better get saving so we could have another one!
"I feel complete now, I'm so happy. My heart is very full."
The couple, who married in 2014, feared they might never have a child of their own after Karen failed to get pregnant and was diagnosed with fertility issues.
Karen said: "We tried for a year to conceive naturally and nothing happened, so we went to the GP and they ran some tests.
"There's no specific reason. I don't ovulate regularly so that's the main thing, but other than that, there's no reason - we don't have any conditions.
"We had five embryos made up. We've lost two - I miscarried one in 2019, and then one in September last year, a month before we fell pregnant with Gabi."
Karen was given funding for one round of IVF on the NHS in 2017 at the Bristol Centre for Reproductive Medicine, which proved successful and she gave birth to Cameron on September 1, 2018.
His sister, baby Isabella Grace, was born two years later on September 15, 2020, and the couple finally welcomed baby Gabriella Edith on July 3, 2022.
Karen and James Marks are in the midst of preparing for their family's first Christmas Day with their three children - Cameron, five, Isabella, three, and Gabriella, 17 months.
The three youngsters are considered triplets as they were conceived on the same day - and at the same time - through IVF, from the same batch of embryos.
After Karen gave birth to Cameron on September 1, 2018, the couple kept their viable embryos frozen so they could add to their family later, with Isabella born on September 15, 2020, and Gabriella born on July 3, 2022.
With three children at home, Karen, 36, and James, 38, now have their hands full but feel like the luckiest pair in the world after their long journey to welcoming their triplets.
Karen, who lives with company director James and their three kids in Taunton, Somerset, said: "This is really our first proper Christmas all together as Isabella was in hospital last year and got out on Christmas Day.
"The kids are really excited, they ask me every single day 'Is it Christmas yet?'.
"The magic of Christmas for the kids is what it is all about!".
Karen said they are holding Christmas Day at their home, with Grandma and Grandad visiting too.
She said: "Grandma and grandpa will be over on the day with more presents and for lunch.
"I don't know where they're all going to go - it's nuts!".
When speaking about the trials of IVF, Karen said the pair feel "so incredibly lucky".
She explained: "It feels so great to have all three of our children now.
"Some people go through IVF and sadly don't even get to have one baby, and we've managed to have three, so we just feel so lucky.
"Gabi was our last embryo, so she's our last baby now. I knew I wasn't done before Gabi, so I told my husband if it didn't work, then we better get saving so we could have another one!
"I feel complete now, I'm so happy. My heart is very full."
The couple, who married in 2014, feared they might never have a child of their own after Karen failed to get pregnant and was diagnosed with fertility issues.
Karen said: "We tried for a year to conceive naturally and nothing happened, so we went to the GP and they ran some tests.
"There's no specific reason. I don't ovulate regularly so that's the main thing, but other than that, there's no reason - we don't have any conditions.
"We had five embryos made up. We've lost two - I miscarried one in 2019, and then one in September last year, a month before we fell pregnant with Gabi."
Karen was given funding for one round of IVF on the NHS in 2017 at the Bristol Centre for Reproductive Medicine, which proved successful and she gave birth to Cameron on September 1, 2018.
His sister, baby Isabella Grace, was born two years later on September 15, 2020, and the couple finally welcomed baby Gabriella Edith on July 3, 2022.