A family-of-five welcomed conjoined twins at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center earlier this month.
Elijah and Isaac’s father, Jason Kroeger of North Carolina says the twins condition is better than expected but they still have some ‘speed bumps to overcome.’
Jason wife’s Heather Kroeger found out she was pregnant and was told early on they were only having one child, but a later ultrasound in his first trimester showed there were two, and they were conjoined.
Scroll for video
Issac and Elijah, left and right respectively are conjoined in a way that they can not be safely separated
The family of five welcomed two new additions to their family after Heather gave birth to conjoined twins earlier this month
They were told by their health care providers that they could perform an abortion for Heather.
‘To us it wasn’t an option. These children are our children they were given to us for a purpose… to protect them. Abortion was never an option,’ Jason told Fox19.
The boys are joined in a way they can not be safely separated.
Heather and Jason, who were high school sweethearts who already have five other children together.
According to the family’s GoFundMe page ‘Heather and Jason were thrilled this year when they found out they were once again pregnant and due on October 1, 2017.’
‘It is no surprise that they have been advised several times throughout the pregnancy to abort these two little precious souls,’ the page went on to say of the family’s decision to keep the boys who were born earlier this month.
The page is helping to raise money to help care for their new additions’ special needs and medical care.
Conjoined twins named Elijah and Isaac were delivered earlier this month to Heather and Jason Kroeger
The family traveled from North Carolina to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center so that Heather could receive the proper care for her delivery and her new twins
The cost of the family traveling from North Carolina to the hospital in Cincinnati alone was expensive.
The family-of-five stayed at St. Xavier Church which provided shelter for the family during their first few days in the city.
The couple married in 1999 and their children’s ages range from 17 to the newborn conjoined twins.
Heather remains at the hospital with the babies for the time being while her husband is heading back to North Carolina to work and be with their eldest high school aged sons.
‘Friends, we cannot see what God sees. Nor can we always understand the ‘hows’ and ‘whys,” the GoFundMe page reads. ‘This family has inspired so many of us with their trust in God and love for these babies.’