They bonded in their BabyCenter birth group, and delivered 20 minutes apart

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posted in Pregnancy

Mandy Miller of Columbus, Ohio, and Brie LaMacchia of Virginia Beach were both pregnant with their first child when they joined the BabyCenter Community. Little did the expecting mamas know they would form a special friendship that would continue even after they delivered their babies.

Through the October 2017 Birth Club, Miller, 29, and LaMacchia, 24, discovered they had the same due dates. The moms-to-be immediately clicked and began texting each other every day. Even cooler? These long-distance besties both ended up giving birth 12 days early — and just 20 minutes apart!

Miller and her partner (left) and LaMacchia and her parnter (right) pose with ultrasound photos.

“It was so nice having a friend going through the same things as you at the same exact time,” Miller told BabyCenter. “We would complain about morning sickness, exhaustion, our wedding rings not fitting on our swollen fingers, and how massive our bellies were growing. We also shared ultrasound photos of our babies, talked about what our kids would look like and discussed hopefully meeting one day since we live 10 hours away.”

After nine months of bonding over their impending motherhood, Miller and LaMacchia ultimately went into labor on the same day.

“I was completely shocked we ended up having our babies on the same day,” Miller told BabyCenter. “Brie was dilated and effaced at her doctor appointment and I was not at all, so I thought for sure she would give birth before me. But I ended up giving birth 27 minutes before her! It was awesome being in labor together and texting each other encouraging words and funny pictures to take our mind off of the pain. I felt like I wasn’t alone and that we were doing this together despite we were hundreds of miles apart.”

Miller and LaMaccia’s special friendship didn’t end when they delivered their babies. Far from it, actually. These new mamas leaned on each other for support during the early weeks of round-the-clock feedings, endless diaper changes and sleepless nights.

“Brie and I keep in touch every single day.We talk about our babies’ milestones, our mutual hatred for pumping. We text each other during the 3 a.m. nightly feeds and diaper changes,” Miller said. “It feels so nice to have someone who knows exactly what I’m going through and someone I can ask advice. When times get stressful due to lack of sleep, we encourage each other and get us through the rough patches. We also share the happy moments of our babies’ lives and send numerous pictures to each other every day. We also FaceTime regularly so our babies can ‘chat’ too.”

After navigating their first pregnancies, childbirth and new motherhood together, Miller and LaMacchia finally met each other face-to-face when their babies — Miller’s daughter, Madelyn, and LaMacchia’s son, John — were 2 1/2 months old.

“It was so cool meeting her for the first time because I felt like I knew her forever since, by the time we met, we had been talking every single day for almost a whole year,” Miller told BabyCenter. “Brie and I joked that we need to plan our second pregnancies together so we can go through everything together again!”

Baby John’s face ha been blurred at the request of his mama.

As someone who frequented the BabyCenter Community through three pregnancies, I know how beneficial it is to be connected with a group of women who are going through the same experience at the same time. Granted, I never made any life-long friends during my time lurking in birth clubs. But still: Reading about others’ pregnancy symptoms, struggles, clever hacks, worries, hopes, progress and more was incredibly enlightening — and comforting. I didn’t feel so alone or “crazy” when pregnancy exhaustion (physical and emotional) got the best of me. So I can only imagine how incredible it must have been to have the friendship Miller and LaMacchia had during this life-changing journey.

These two ladies met by chance on the BabyCenter Community. Now, they are forever connected by the special bond created through their shared experience: Motherhood. Thanks so much, Mandy and Brie, for sharing your story with us!

Photos courtesy of Mandy Miller and Brie LaMacchia