‘We’re overjoyed to have Ben and Blake’

“I was in shock. The boys were so tiny,” said mum Amanda Kelly-Bodell. “They were on machines to help them breathe. We were watching all the time to see if they were breathing.”

Fast forward from that nightmare scenario in March to Christmas and Amanda and husband Dave have perfectly healthy baby boys ... and today they want to thank the medics who gave them the best present they could possibly ask for.

“The doctors and nurses were amazing,” said Amanda, who works at Paul Mark Hairdressers in Thornton.

“The staff on the Neonatal Unit were absolutely brilliant with us. They kept us so well informed. They gave me a shoulder to cry on - in the first couple of weeks I cried every day.

“They were fabulous. The nurses were so lovely. We can’t thank them enough.”

Amanda and Dave expected the twins to be delivered on May 13 but they gave their mum and dad quite a surprise when they arrived on March 9.

Ben weighed just 2lbs and 9oz when he was born and Blake weighed 2lbs and 13oz.

Amanda’s waters broke on February 7 and hospital staff managed to help her keep the twins inside for another four weeks.

The twins were eventually born at 30 weeks and five days into the pregnancy – nine weeks and two days early.

Amanda needed to have an emergency Caesarean section as Ben was in the breech position. The twins were eventually born at 2.30am.

It has been a long road since, with plenty of ups and downs, but the boys are now healthy and well and the family are now all set for their first Christmas together,

Dave, a sales manager for an electronics form called Spiman Developments in Carleton, said: “It’s so nice to have them home and well – especially because it’s Christmas.

“Every time we go out we get stopped. We went to a Christmas market and it took an hour extra to get round everything.

“They boys are really well now. They don’t have any health problems.”

Amanda added: “It must be so hard for people whose babies are born prematurely at this time of year.

“I keep thinking about them and I realise how lucky we are.

“We’re overjoyed to have Blake and Ben.”