Uniontown spontaneous identical triplets settling in at home
Barely three weeks old, Kilaiah, Kinya and Kiyelle Bass are already attracting a lot of attention as spontaneous identical triplets — so rare that their birth is considered one in a million.
Their mother, Kishauna Rose, 21, looked on as the sweet, tiny girls stretched their arms and made cooing sounds as they lay side by side recently in a crib in the living room of their Uniontown home.
Kishauna had just finished feeding Kiyelle and placed her beside her sisters — all dressed in pink and white. Lying together, it’s nearly impossible to tell them apart.
“I have wrist bands on them from the hospital. When they outgrow them, I don’t know what I’m doing,” said Kishauna.
Being spontaneous identical triplets means the girls were born from one egg without the use of fertility drugs.
Associated Press recently reported, “Experts have debated how rare that is, but disagree, with various sources claiming the odds of identical triples range from 60,000 to 1 to 200 million to 1.”
Twins run in the family, and that’s what Kishauna was expecting when at 28 weeks she found out there’s was one more baby.
“They said I was having twins at first and sent me to the hospital to be sure. Right before I was to leave, she said she saw another head. I was shocked. I made her get her supervisor,” said Kishauna, a 2013 graduate of Uniontown Area High School who is enrolled at Westmoreland County Community College where she plans to study nursing.
Family and friends have pitched in to help and were present at Magee-Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh on Sept. 9 when the girls were born in a planned caesarean section.
“There were so many of us at the hospital to support her, we had the whole waiting room,” said friend Chantla Stokes-Colon. “It’s a day we won’t forget.”
Each baby had a medical team ready to take care of her. The girls were all born healthy: Kilaiah weighed 4 pounds, 5 ounces, Kinya was 4 pounds, 10 ounces and Kiyelle was 4 pounds, 13 ounces.
Kishauna said she and the babies’ father, Kato Bass, selected names for the three girls after going through lists and receiving suggestions.
The girls came home to three older Bass siblings: sister Kamora, 3; and brothers Kato, 2, and Kishawn, 1.
“They love them,” said Kishauna, noting that Kamora helps with the triplets.
Taking care of six children age 3 and under can be overwhelming, but Kishanua said, “I’m fine. I’m getting used to it.”
And in this house, there is no typical day.
“Every day is something different,” said Kishauna. “There’s some days they wake up together, some days they don’t.”
Two babies may cry at the same but usually not all three. Kishana’s biggest challenge is feeding them.
And she said, “When they sleep, I do.”
Chantla expressed admiration for Kishana in taking care of her family.
“I love Kishauna and to have a triple birth — it’s not easy to have one birth. She has a very rare blessing to have three and all healthy,” said Chantla, adding, “Not that it’s an easy task for her. I want to make sure Kishauna has the resources she needs to be the best mother she needs to be. She has a lot of support from family and friends. There’s always someone here. She’s a great mom.”
Beginning Oct. 1, gifts for the family are being collected at Suzzie Jo’s Beauty Salon, 62 W. Peter St., Uniontown. For more information, call 724-439-9793.
The public can follow the progress of the triplets on Instagram @kickinitwiththeks as well as Facebook. A website is also being created.