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The World’s First Surviving Septuplets – 20 Years Later

Having twins, triplets, quadruplets and quintuplets seems like a scary and exciting proposition all at once. But imagine giving birth to septuplets! Yeah, seven children to raise. A couple might be shocked once they found out they were giving birth to seven babies at once. Just having twins or triplets can be a shock, but having seven can be a real miracle since all of these kinds of pregnancies are rare. Septuplets are extremely rare. This is the story of Bobbi and Kenny McCaughey.

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The McCaughey family hails from Des Moines, Iowa in the United States, which is a quite corn field laden midwest state. Their first miracle came with the birth of their first daughter, Mikayla Marie, who was born in 1996. This first birth was actually a miracle too because the couple experienced problems with fertility due to Bobbi’s failing pituitary gland at the time. This glad helps control the functions of the body by creating hormones and sending them to the bloodstream. Mikayla was born nonetheless and the couple really wanted a larger family so they decided to take part in fertility treatment. They had no idea how successful their little biological mission was going to be.

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Bobbi and Kenny McCaughey consider their first daughter Mikayla Marie just as much a miracle as the amazing septuplets they gave birth to later on.

Some interesting facts about twins, triplets and birth of multiples

Having the simultaneous birth of more than one baby is a biological feat of no small proportion. It happens when an egg divides to create multiple embryos (something that is believed to be completely random and is rare to happen at all) or when sperm happens to fertilize more eggs than just one in the womb area. When eggs split into multiple embryo, babies of the litter will share genetic materials, which is how you end up with identical twins and so forth. If more than a single egg is fertilized by the sperm, these babies won’t share all the same genetic material. This results in a fraternal birth as it is called. Chances of having muliples of some sort can be influenced by a variety of different factors. Its also kind of like winning the lottery for birth.

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Statistics

Data from the last approximately 30 years has shown that the statistical probability of having an identical pair of twins is about 3.5 for every 1,000 birth around the world. Those are some pretty slim odds, but only around 12-18 in 1,000 people are actually twins that were conceived naturally. In the United States alone, twins are born in about 35 out of 1,000 births. Fraternal births increased by around 77 percent thanks to fertility treatments. Fertility treatments may actually boost the chances of a couple having multiple births, just like Bobbi and Kenny McCaughey. Hereditary factors may also play a role in muliple births.

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Fertility treatment may boost the chances of multiple births to occur

The McCaughey family really were desperate to add members to their small family, so they opted for modern medicine to help solve the problem. The fertility medicine and treatments helped with ovulation necessary for anyone with a fertility problem to conceive children, including Bobbi. After Bobbi received the treatments, she began going for check ups and scans and eventually Bobbi was shown to be carrying children. She was pregnant! She was surprised but even more so to find out that she was carrying septuplets, 7 babies, in her womb. On occasion, more than one embryo is created so doctors expect that to possibly happen, but seven suprised everybody. Doctors sometimes seek to selectively reduce the embryos to increase survival chances of embryos but the family decided to leave it to God.

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The family was featured on the magazine covers of TIME and Newsweek.

Seven Little Angels

It all took place on November 19, 1997. They were born nine weeks early. Doctors performed a cesarean section. All the babies were born healthy. They were each born within six minutes of each other. They weighed a range between 2 lbs, 5oz and 3 lbs, 4oz. The world’s first surviving septuplets captures America’s attention and their hearts. Everyone wondered their fate.

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The McCaughey’s septuplets are alive and well

All of the children made it through the tough delivery. They consisted of four boys and three girls. The McCaughey family must have had one hard time trying to get names for all their newly arrived children. But the names were ready at birth, and included Kenny Robert, Brandon James, Nathan Roy, Natalie Sue, Alexis May, Kelsey Ann, and Joel Steven in order of each ones birth.

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The couple had to go through 52 diapers and 42 baby bottles everyday

The McCaughey family reportedly received many donations from people wishing them well. They received diapers, a vehicle, even a house! There were other donations too.

News of their birth made the McCaughey family famous. They were adorned with a feature story in TIME Magazine. Even President Bill Clinton reached out to the family. The McCaughey’s even met President George Bush (Sr.) and also appeared on television for a taping of The Oprah Winfrey show in Chicago.

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It wasn’t all roses though. Even though these kids were born healthy, Alexis and Nathan did have difficulties with walking because they were born with a condition called cerebral palsy. This condition effects motor skills, coordination and movement of the body. Nathan did eventually teach himself to walk. Alexis walks using a walker’s help. These are the world’s first septuplets that survived through pregnancy and lived through infancy.

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Celebrating a Thirteenth Birthday

Life as Teens

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The family made sure the media could not interfere in the normal lives of their children and made sure distance was maintained. They were able to grow up with a normal existence, going to Carlisle High School in Carlisle in 2012. The kids were even part of the high school band, which made their parents proud.

High School Graduation

Each child felt like high school was mostly normal and all siblings graduated graduated in 2016. They had various goals and dreams for themselves.

McCaughey septuplets take a photo with the Principal of Carlisle High School in May 2016.

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The McCaughey Septuplets a Whole 20 Years Later

Now it has been 20 years since the McCaughey septuplets were born. They are still thriving and living life. Each have gone along different career paths, showing that each is still an individual. Alexis and Natalie still want to become teachers. Kenny is ambitious and interested in the construction industry. The computer geeks of the siblings are Joel and Nathan, who are both majoring in computer science. Brandon is a United States Army ranger. Kelsey is passionate about music and is seeking a career there. Mikayla, the firstborn, is married and has her own child.

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Daughter Overwhelms Parents Restaurant With Customers By Posting On TikTok

Renee Yates

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A seven-second video posted on TikTok by Jennifer Le has saved her parents’ Vietnamese pho restaurant from going out of business. In the video, Le showed the empty restaurant and her dad looking sad at the register. She then asked for social media’s help to keep the restaurant in business. The restaurant is in California and was doing ok before the pandemic, but has since had trouble getting customers to dine in.

The video went viral, and within hours, it had garnered millions of views and shares. People all over the world were touched by Le’s message and began sharing the video on their social media accounts. The response was overwhelming, with people expressing their support for the restaurant and their willingness to help.

As a result of the video, the restaurant was flooded with customers, many of whom had never heard of the place before. The increased business allowed Le’s parents to keep the restaurant open and the phones are ringing off the hook. The family was overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and expressed their gratitude to everyone who had shared the video and visited the restaurant.

Le’s video is a perfect example of the power of social media to effect change. In just seven seconds, she was able to capture the attention of millions of people and inspire them to take action. The video also highlights the struggles faced by small businesses during the pandemic and the importance of community support in keeping these businesses afloat.

Le’s video has since become a source of inspiration for many people who are struggling with similar issues. It serves as a reminder that even the smallest actions can have a significant impact, and that we all have the power to make a difference in our communities.

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Massive Sandcastle Built by Auckland Brothers Impresses Scores of Beachgoers

Kevin Wells

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When you have run out of Christmas ideas, nothing beats going to the beach and letting your creative juices flow. That’s what two brothers in New Zealand did this past Boxing Day and ended up with an amazing and eye-catching sandcastle.

After building a massive sandcastle on Boxing Day, two Auckland boys gained praise from other people around Mt Maunganui’s beach area that day.

Jared and Paul Brandon spent 10 hours that day building a two-meter-high sandcastle, beginning with a sketch of the structure “on a piece of A4 paper” and beginning at high tide. The pair plans to turn this into a Boxing Day ritual.

On Christmas Eve, the brothers started strategizing on how to top last year’s one-meter-high tower on Boxing Day 2021.

Because Jared and Paul are “very competitive,” they wanted to outdo their performance from the previous year. Before beginning their construction, the two searched online for sandcastle designs after visiting Bunnings to get tools, buckets, as well as a footrest.

Both residents and visitors have expressed admiration and astonishment at the beautiful creation.

Jared chuckles, “A guy is assessing how tall it is currently with his beach umbrella.

Jared informed the media, “This one is 2 meters, so we needed a few footstools to climb up tall enough and also used a builder’s level so it didn’t topple over.

The 150-liter pail was the biggest we were able to use, and the traditional household bucket was a fairly small one. We purchased them both from Bunnings.

Paul explains, “There are a few techniques, such as two portions of water to one portion of sand.”

Then came the spatulas to shape the windows, then toothpicks for creating the roof piles, as well as the straws for blowing off the “extra sand.”

The previous night, the two worked on it until 8 p.m., and unlike last year, it is still standing.

“Time went by incredibly quickly; it seemed like we were only at the beach for five hours, instead of ten.” “Paul spoke to the press.

He claims that while working for a California hotel plus learning how to construct sandcastles as a kid-friendly activity, he acquired the skill there about eight years ago.

“Now that he’s used that knowledge and developed it, he taught me. Therefore, for the previous four to five years, whenever we had the time, we would construct a sandcastle once a year ” says Jared.

The two, who are both camera operators, intend to go much further next year and are hoping to enlist the aid of a larger family.

We will attempt to teach my sister as well as my brother-in-law to assist us as they appear interested this year. “We are striving to dredge up more relatives to get involved in creating a village in 2023.”

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Man Finds $47,000 Historic Ring

Renee Yates

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England is very much metal detector country. The land outside the big cities is stuffed full of artifacts and leftovers from ancient times, ranging from before the Romans’ arrival to the Middle Ages and more. So, it’s not surprising, with the blessing of local farmers, that many a fellow with a metal detector is out there spending a Saturday or Sunday scanning through a fallow farm field to see what might be found. As it turned out, David Board was one of those hunters, and he just happened to come across a very small gold ring in one of his ventures.

Located outside of Dorset, Board was busy scanning a pasture field and had been doing so for hours. The sun was late in the sky, and Board was about to wrap up when his machine pinged a definite metallic substance under the soil he was waving the sensor over. Sure enough, pinpointing the location and then digging specifically into that spot, Board unearthed a very small gold ring.

It was in the farm soil, the ground typically tilled for planting, but this particular field had been used for cattle instead. So, five inches underground, the ring remained until Board found it and pulled it back into the daylight. At first, he chalked up the discovery to just another piece of metal from old times, he cleared off the dirt, pocketed the ring and kept going. Then, at the end of the day, Board went home and washed off his finds in the sink. It was only then that he realized what that ring actually was.

While the method of metal detecting in England gives archaeologists utter heart attacks every time they hear a similar story, the finds are generally split between the metal detector and the farm owner, unless the farm owner just waives off the matter and lets the hunters keep whatever they find. Whichever the case in this instance, the ring was no small trinket. It turned out to be an exceedingly well-crafted and rare gold wedding ring from the Medieval period and in very good condition. To be auctioned off later this year, the find is expected to net between 30,000 to 47,000 British Pounds.

The only surprise to anyone hearing the story in England these days is why the local farmers still allow detectors to scan their fields without any stake in the finds.

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Gold Miners Dig Up a Lot More than Ancient Gold

Kevin Wells

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Gold miners are used to finding all sorts of things from ancient times. It’s not uncommon to find relics of prior miners, old habitats, animal remains and even dinosaur fossils as they dig deep into the earth or excavate large areas. However, it’s not an everyday occurrence to find a practically intact mummy of a baby mammoth.

Based on the estimates possible on first evaluation of the mummified baby mammoth found on June 21 by operations at the Klondike gold deposit, way up in the northern part of Canada, miners discovered a baby female mammoth assumed to be probably 30,000 years old. An occasional dinosaur or mammoth bone is uncommon but a regular occurrence. However, finding a complete set of remains of a baby mammoth is extremely rare and a big news in the world of paleontology and biology. Even better, the specimen is practically complete. Most times the remains have been tampered with by other animals or hunting and scavenging. Then nature moves things around even further and separates parts. In this case, however, the baby mammoth was complete, intact and well-preserved.

Named Nun cho ga but the local tribes, the find essentially means big baby animal, no surprise. All the skin and hair is intact, which makes the find extremely valuable in terms of understanding exactly how junvenile mammoths looked and probably behaved mechanically as well as physically. In terms of scientific information, the find is huge. It’s similar to finding an entire painting by a famous artist versus just having a brush he or she might have used.

Locked away in permafrost for centuries, the baby mammoth was literally preserved in the earth’s freezer, untouched by bacteria or the elements for an amazing amount of time. Scientists evaluating the specimen guess that the juvenile likely passed away earlier, maybe from sickness, as its pack was moving since there were no predatory marks on it or scattering of remains. Or, also likely, the animal may have gotten stuck in a deep mud pit or quicksand and was quickly buried, protecting it from rot or degradation.

The last time anyone found a North American baby mammoth in good condition was in 1948, some 70 plus years ago. That one was named Effie, and was located inside a gold mine in Alaska. Additionally, another more recent find was in 2007 in Siberia. That find was estimated to be much older, at 42,000 years of age. It was comparative to the same size as Nun cho ga, which means the two together will provide some interesting comparative notes and years of study going forward. It’s enough to make a dinosaur scientist get giggly.

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Pennsylvania Nurses Get a COVID Booster for Student Loan Debt

Shannon Jackson

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Becoming a nurse is no easy day in the park. Aside from all the clinical hours required and bookwork in classes, a candidate still has to pass their state license exams as well as figure out how to pay for the education costs. It’s quite common for a graduating nurse, whether an LN or RN, to have thousands of dollars in student loan debt. That was already a significant barrier to recruitment before COVID-19 arrived. Things only got worse as experienced nurses left the field in droves after the pandemic’s burnout.

However, Pennsylvania is hitting the problem head on. The state decided that it was going to provide a pot totaling $55 million to help reduce or eliminate student loan debt for eligible nurses. Funded by a combination of state dollars matched to federal American Rescue Plan funds for overall economic stimulus, Pennsylvania directed its internal share to help boost nursing in-state again as well as keep nurses in their careers with financial stability.

Essentially, any nurse who worked during the pandemic, was licensed by the state, and cared for COVID-19 patients will be eligible to get a $7,500 payment for student loan relief. The funds are one-time, non-recurring, but they still represent a huge wave of debt relief for affected nurses. 24,000 plus nurses responded with applications before the deadline ended, which has exceeded the estimated fund allocation available, no surprise. To deal with this surge in eligibility, the state administrators will split the funds on a prorata basis between the impacted state areas and regions, based on the number of nurses who applied. Then, within each regional pot, nurses will be selected by random on who will get the one-time payment.

Those who are selected won’t see the funds themselves. To ensure the payment is used correctly, the money goes directly to the student loan servicer provided by that nurse in their application. The first recipients will see their student loans lowered this month, in August 2022. To help deal with the demand, an additional $15 million in federal dollars was redirected to the fund as well. The allocation for an awardee is $2,500 each year for three years. This allows an easier outflow of funds versus a demand surge all at once. Which will be a considerable amount of accounting work on the state side.

The hope is that with the eventual success of the program expected in nurse retention, the same model can be used again to bolster sagging industries seeing a brain drain in Pennsylvania, as well as stabilize people being crushed by student loan debt.

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