Braden Barnes believes there will come a time when his children express their annoyance with him and his wife Brigitte (Biddy). That could happen if Heidi, Jock or Ginny decide they no longer want to share their birthday with a sibling.
The Barnes children were all born on the same day of the year — November 16. Heidi in 2018, Jock in 2020 and Ginny, in 2022. Seven Sharp reporter Jendy Harper joined the siblings' first, joint birthday party.
There were three cakes, with three numbered balloons flying overhead, and a plethora of presents to unwrap.
The chaos and noise resembled most child parties, but this event was three times the fun. Heidi Barnes was turning five, Jock Barnes, three, and little sister, Ginny, experiencing her first birthday party. And, as expected, was more enamoured with the wrapping paper and decorations.
The children's aunt, Juliette Maitland, was already looking ahead to future celebrations.
"Hopefully they keep doing the full birthday together for a long time. I can see a 16th, 18th and 20th birthday being quite a good one."
The trio's Mum, Brigitte (Biddy) said all three births were spontaneous, natural deliveries and when she fell pregnant with Ginny she felt the pressure, "it was 'oh my gosh, are we going to be able to do this, pull this off?'"
She did, and on 16 November 2022, Ginny arrived with two and a half hours to spare, amid a flurry of excited text messages from family and friends.
Braden said his children aren't the only birthday match-ups in the family.
"Both our fathers are born on the 4th of November, and I've got grandparents born the same day — November 25 — so November is probably a good month."
It's a busy month for sure, a birthday bonanza.
To determine how rare it is for three siblings, born in different years, to share the same birthday, we approached mathematician Professor Elena Moltchanova at the University of Canterbury.
Her calculations reveal the odds are approximately one in 133,000, and there is a 65% chance that another New Zealand family with three children, also celebrate their birthdays on the same day.
We wish them all the best.
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