Identical Twins Give Birth Hours Apart At Same Hospital

CAMBRIDGE, MA – Rachael McGeoch and Beccy Pistone were separated for the first time in kindergarten, when they were placed in different classes. It was a bit traumatic. Until then, the twins had done everything together – helped each other out of the playpen, escaped from their high chairs – usually with Beccy taking the lead.

"When we were little, she was more the troublemaker and would get me in trouble," Rachael said.

Ever resourceful, and determined to not be kept apart, the now 34-year-old sisters took advantage of their kindergarten classrooms' shared bathroom. They would coordinate bathroom breaks so they could meet in the middle and give each other a hug.

The special bond shared by identical twins, informally known as a "twin thing," often leads to almost spooky coincidences between siblings — like, for instance, Rachael and Beccy both ending up with men named William (Rachael's fiancée goes by Bill; Beccy's husband, Todd).

After Beccy and Todd married, Beccy conceived of with a "twin thing" like none she and Rachael had ever experienced. Beccy and Todd were trying to have a baby, and Beccy suggested the sisters try to coordinate their pregnancies. It worked. Both of the twins both wound up pregnant, their due dates only 13 days apart.

Rachael, who lives in Charlestown, chose to use a midwife at Mount Auburn in Cambridge, hours away from her sister in Brewster. Beccy and Todd wanted to have their baby on Cape Cod, and Beccy wasn't due for weeks.

Once again, the "twin thing" kicked in.

Two weeks overdue, Rachael went to the hospital on Aug. 13 – her sister's due date – to be induced. Two days passed, and Beccy drove up from Brewster to be at Rachael's side. A couple of hours later, Beccy went into labor.

"We thought if we could just get together, then we would both go into labor," Rachael said.

This left Bill pulling double duty as he shuttled back and forth between twins — holding Rachael's hand and helping Beccy onto a yoga ball as she responded to her contractions — until Todd and the sisters' mother arrived.

Beccy was admitted to the hospital and put in the room next door to Rachael's. When Rachael's son, William Charles Bubenicek, was born Aug. 15 at 10:41 p.m., he was greeted with cheering and wall banging from his new aunt and uncle.

Twenty hours later, at 6:54 p.m. on Aug. 16, Beccy's daughter was born. They named her Andi Isabella Pistone.

"The best part about all this was being pregnant together and being able to go through it together," Rachael said. "It's an amazing experience on its own, but being able to go through it with your twin sister is pretty awesome."

Photo 1: Beccy Pistone (left) holds her baby girl Andi Pistone with twin sister Rachael McGeoch (right) and baby boy William Bubenicek at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge.

Photo 2: William Bubenicek (left) with fiancée Rachael McGeoch and baby boy William Bubenicek. William Pistone (right) with wife Beccy Pistone and baby girl Andi Pistone at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge.