Temecula Leap Year 'Baby' Celebrates 20 Years On Earth, 5th Birthday

TEMECULA, CA — The Lurkins family, longtime Temecula residents, have raised three daughters, and somehow, their oldest is still their "youngest." Meet Mackenzie Lurkins. A graduate of Temecula Valley High School and a business entrepreneur student at Arizona State University, on Leap Year 2024, "Mack," as her mother calls her, is turning five.

She is what's known as a "leaper” — a person who is born on Feb. 29. Leap Year tacks an extra day onto February Feb. 29. Doing so every four years or so reconciles Earth’s orbit of the sun and the calendar year. The odds of being born on a Leap Year day are about 1 in 1,461. Only about 5 million people worldwide have ever been born on Feb. 29, according to History.com.

"It feels good to finally make it to 5 years old," she told Patch. "Being born on Leap Year (Feb. 29) is actually my favorite 'fun fact' to share about myself."

According to her mother, Mackenzie was due in mid-March, but the baby had other plans.

"Her due date was March 11, and she came early," Allison Lurkins said. "When I realized she would be born on Leap Year, I wasn't so sure. Being a first-grade teacher, I knew her birthday wouldn't be on the calendar. However, over the years, we've decided it's quite rare and fun!"

To make up for her "non-calendar" birthdate, her family typically has a birthday celebration between Feb. 28 and March 1, when it isn't a leap year. When it is, there is extra room to celebrate.

"We're throwing her a 5-year-old's dream princess party, of course!" Father Rob Lurkins told Patch.

Her younger sisters, both students at Temecula Valley High School, enjoy the teasing of their oldest sister's actual age.

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