A mom from Rhode Island has left social media users stunned after sharing that she's been carrying three babies within just 12 months.
In a viral Instagram video, Ashley C lifts her sweater to reveal her baby bump. The text overlay says: "Everyone announcing their 2025 baby, but I've been pregnant since 2023."
The 31-year-old told Newsweek the clip was meant as a lighthearted response to the popular trend of pregnancy announcements, using a line from "BedRock," a 2009 hip-hop song: "Let me think, I guess it's my turn."
"I wanted to join in on the fun, but having already been pregnant twice in 2024, I made a reel instead. It was meant as a joke but also very much true," she said.
Ashley, who gave birth to premature twins in February 2024, is now expecting their sibling in February 2025. This means she'll have three babies born within 12 months—also known as Irish triplets.
"The term typically refers to siblings born less than 12 months apart, with Irish twins being those born within the same year. Adding a third baby in such a short time frame officially makes them Irish triplets, even though I had twins first," she clarified.
Ashley's path to baby No. 3 came as a surprise, and her initial reaction was far from celebratory. She told Newsweek that she felt anxiety and fear the moment she saw the positive pregnancy test.
"I was deep in the postpartum trenches after giving birth to twins. I had been on birth control for 14 weeks and hadn't had a period since giving birth. I was five months postpartum when I took the test, only to find out I was already nine weeks pregnant," she said.
Her first thought was: Could it be twins again?
Ashley's reel took off on Instagram (@ashleysjeans), amassing 8.5 million views and 104,000 likes. Hundreds of users expressed their amazement and confusion, with some not fully understanding the meaning of Irish triplets.
Fellow moms sympathized with the mom-to-be of three. "I feel this, I was pregnant from 2018 to 2022, 3 babies literally back to back," one wrote.
Another joked, "I see you, and I raise you pregnant since 2020," explaining she was pregnant with her first in August 2020 and is expecting her fourth child in January 2025.
Speaking about the reaction online, Ashley said, "Some women commented saying I should have given my body more rest and questioned why I would choose to go through this again. Others shared that they, too, have Irish twins or Irish triplets, which was comforting. And then there were those who believed I had been pregnant for over a year."
Another user wrote: "Got pregnant 6 months postpartum after taking plan b. Can't imagine it being after twins though! Bless you girl."
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