Sandy Gordon had a flashback as she sat on her couch cradling a newborn baby in each arm.
It took her back 28 years, to be exact.
She recalled holding her twins, Ben and Becca, the same way.
But this week she held Ben's newborn daughter in her right arm and Becca's newborn son in her left.
"It was remarkable," Gordon said. "I just wanted to cry. It was amazing. It was every adjective to express joy."
Ben Gordon and his wife, Brooke, welcomed their daughter Freya Elizabeth on Sept. 8. Becca Butcher and her husband, Joe, welcomed their son, Nash Douglas, on Sept. 11.
It was a surprise to learn that each twin was expecting a baby in September, Gordon said.
Ben and Brooke announced they were expecting their third child at a family dinner. Becca flashed a quizzical glance at her mom. Later, she met her mom in the kitchen and asked, "How would you feel about having another grandbaby in September?"
Gordon, a mother of four and now a grandmother to seven, started crying over the news that her daughter was pregnant with her first child.
This week was the first time the two babies have been together. Both moms were excited about the cousin gathering, too, Gordon said.
"It's been a year. Everybody's going through this," Gordon said. "You need something to put a smile on your face."
'Uncharted territory': Identical triplets were a first for doctors and Omaha couple
- BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
The pregnancy was the first surprise for the Omaha couple with no plans to expand their family. The second was hearing three heartbeats. Amber Morgan gave birth to rare identical triplets on Aug. 26, 2015.
Omaha couple had fertility problems, so woman’s sister carried their twins
- MATT DIXON/THE WORLD-HERALD
Melissa Kayser, left, holds Tierney, while Kayser's sister Lisa Auten, right, holds Ashlynn on Aug. 10, 2017.
Unable to maintain a pregnancy, Kayser used a gestational carrier. Auten offered to do the job for her sister and ended up carrying surprise twins.
Nebraska welcomes its first — and likely only — quadruplets of 2017
- METHODIST HEATH SYSTEM
Aaron Smith holds Aaliyah, left, and Cassadee; Candace Smith holds AJ and Skyler. The quadruplets were born Feb. 9, 2017, at Methodist Women's Hospital.
The four newborns were the first quadruplets born in the state in 2017, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Lakeside Hospital's first triplets are born to a couple who met there, work there
- MATT MILLER/THE WORLD-HERALD
Julie Kleymann gave birth to Omaha's Lakeside Hospital’s first set of triplets on May 26, 2015. Jeff, right, was the first to be born, followed by Lyla, middle, and then Knox.
Their parents, Julie and Drew Kleymann, met while working the overnight shift at the same hospital 2006, then married in 2010.
'It just blew our minds': Identical triplets born to Nebraska couple are one in a million
- MATT MILLER/THE WORLD-HERALD
The Teten triplets, held by parents Derek and Lindsey on July 22, 2017. The trio was the second set of spontaneous identical triplets — they were conceived naturally — born at Methodist Women's Hospital. The first set was born in 2015.
"It's like winning the lottery twice," said Dr. Brendan Connealy, a maternal-fetal specialist at the Omaha hospital.
These Nebraska quadruplets are rare indeed
Quadruplet Connor Negus in the neonatal intensive care unit at Methodist Women's Hospital in Omaha on Jan. 11, 2013.
Dr. Todd Lovgren, the perinatologist who oversaw their care, said there have been fewer than 100 cases reported in the United States of quadruplets developing inside their mother the way these did.
Omaha couple welcomes Nebraska's first set of quadruplets born in 2015
- SARAH HOFFMAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Newborns Kayla, Leonidas, Thomas and Arya are held by their parents Ezinne and Andrew Jones of Omaha on June 11, 2015. The couple had the quadruplets on May 27, 2015.
The foursome was the first set of quadruplets born in Nebraska in 2015, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Quintuplets born in Omaha
- METHODIST HEALTH SYSTEM
Arleth Garcia was born on July 25, 2013, weighing 2 pounds, 6 ounces. She was part of Nebraska's third-ever set of quintuplets. The set of five were born at Methodist Women's Hospital in Omaha to Bianca and Jose Garcia of Sioux City, Iowa.
One birth, multiple babies: 8 stories of rare cases and surprised parents
'Uncharted territory': Identical triplets were a first for doctors and Omaha couple
- BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
The pregnancy was the first surprise for the Omaha couple with no plans to expand their family. The second was hearing three heartbeats. Amber Morgan gave birth to rare identical triplets on Aug. 26, 2015.
Omaha couple had fertility problems, so woman’s sister carried their twins
- MATT DIXON/THE WORLD-HERALD
Melissa Kayser, left, holds Tierney, while Kayser's sister Lisa Auten, right, holds Ashlynn on Aug. 10, 2017.
Unable to maintain a pregnancy, Kayser used a gestational carrier. Auten offered to do the job for her sister and ended up carrying surprise twins.
Nebraska welcomes its first — and likely only — quadruplets of 2017
- METHODIST HEATH SYSTEM
Aaron Smith holds Aaliyah, left, and Cassadee; Candace Smith holds AJ and Skyler. The quadruplets were born Feb. 9, 2017, at Methodist Women's Hospital.
The four newborns were the first quadruplets born in the state in 2017, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Lakeside Hospital's first triplets are born to a couple who met there, work there
- MATT MILLER/THE WORLD-HERALD
Julie Kleymann gave birth to Omaha's Lakeside Hospital’s first set of triplets on May 26, 2015. Jeff, right, was the first to be born, followed by Lyla, middle, and then Knox.
Their parents, Julie and Drew Kleymann, met while working the overnight shift at the same hospital 2006, then married in 2010.
'It just blew our minds': Identical triplets born to Nebraska couple are one in a million
- MATT MILLER/THE WORLD-HERALD
The Teten triplets, held by parents Derek and Lindsey on July 22, 2017. The trio was the second set of spontaneous identical triplets — they were conceived naturally — born at Methodist Women's Hospital. The first set was born in 2015.
"It's like winning the lottery twice," said Dr. Brendan Connealy, a maternal-fetal specialist at the Omaha hospital.
These Nebraska quadruplets are rare indeed
Quadruplet Connor Negus in the neonatal intensive care unit at Methodist Women's Hospital in Omaha on Jan. 11, 2013.
Dr. Todd Lovgren, the perinatologist who oversaw their care, said there have been fewer than 100 cases reported in the United States of quadruplets developing inside their mother the way these did.
Omaha couple welcomes Nebraska's first set of quadruplets born in 2015
- SARAH HOFFMAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Newborns Kayla, Leonidas, Thomas and Arya are held by their parents Ezinne and Andrew Jones of Omaha on June 11, 2015. The couple had the quadruplets on May 27, 2015.
The foursome was the first set of quadruplets born in Nebraska in 2015, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Quintuplets born in Omaha
- METHODIST HEALTH SYSTEM
Arleth Garcia was born on July 25, 2013, weighing 2 pounds, 6 ounces. She was part of Nebraska's third-ever set of quintuplets. The set of five were born at Methodist Women's Hospital in Omaha to Bianca and Jose Garcia of Sioux City, Iowa.
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