A miracle mother-of-six who fell in love with baby twins with a rare genetic deformity has devoted her life to raising them after they were taken away from their parents.
Matthew and Marshall Trepanier, three, have misshapen, oversized heads due to Pfeiffer Syndrome, which caused their skull bones to fuse prematurely in the womb.
Kind-hearted nurse Linda Trepanier, 58, from Lakeville, Minnesota, took them in as a foster carer when they were four weeks old after their parents were deemed unable to take care of them.
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What a heart: Linda Trepanier, 58, took twins Matthew and Marshall in when they were four weeks old after their parents were deemed unable to take care of them
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Say cheese! The twins were born with Pfeiffer Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes their heads to be misshapen and oversized
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Aw! The nurse was asked by Protective Child Services if she would be willing to adopt one of the twins, but she said she would never separate them and adopted both
The full-time medical foster carer was then asked by Child Protective Services if she would consider adopting one of the boys for good.
She said she could never separate the lovable pair – so she adopted them both.
‘When I first saw the twins I thought they were the most adorable little things I had ever seen,’ she recalled.
‘They had these big heads and tiny bodies. They weighed 8lbs but their bodies were the size of newborns, so most of the weight was because of their heads.
‘I just fell in love with them. I knew in my heart that they were my boys.’
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Love at first sight: Linda fell in love with the baby twins as soon as she saw them
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Play time! Twins Matthew and Marshall inherited the rare genetic disorder, which affects their head and skull, from their father
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Selfless love: Linda’s friends and family don’t understand why she took on such a big responsibility at an age when they think she should be looking forward to retirement
Pfeiffer Syndrome, a rare genetic defect which the twins inherited from their father, affects a baby’s face and skull.
It occurs when the parts of the skull fuse together too early, meaning the bone can’t expand as the brain grows.
Matthew and Marshall were diagnosed with Pfeiffer type two, which is characterized by severe hand and foot deformities, fibrous joints, high foreheads, displaced ears and protruding eyes.
Their condition means they require round-the-clock care and have regular medical appointments.
Over the last two years they have both had three operations to reshape the bone that fused together before they were born to allow space for their brains to grow.
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It’s all worth it to her: The twins require round-the-clock care but the Minnesota mom’s career as a nurse has prepared her to take on the challenge
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Look at those smiles! The twins have both had three operations over the last two years to reshape their head structure and allow space for their brains to grow
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A story of hope: Matthew and Marshall’s disorder affects their mobility and they need wheelchairs to get around. They also need breathing tubes and eyeglasses
They need breathing tubes to survive and use wheelchairs to get around because the condition affects their mobility. They also wear glasses because their eyesight is poor.
Linda needs to take their temperature every few hours to check for infections and she tucks them into bed tightly every night to prevent them from yanking out their breathing tubes.
The tubes also mean they have a direct airway to their lungs so a simple cold or flu virus could kill them, and whenever she takes them outdoors she brings an oxygen tank in case of emergencies.
Linda’s family and friends think she is crazy to take on such responsibility at her age, when she should be looking forward to retirement.
But she said she couldn’t care less about that.
‘People struggle to understand. They say, “Oh, those kids are going to tie you down,” but I have learned to live with it. I just feel privileged that I have been able to make a real, positive difference to Matthew and Marshall’s lives,’ said Linda.
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A full-time job: Linda has to tuck the twins tight at night so they don’t accidentally remove their breathing tubes in the middle of the night
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Happy against the odds: Lucy said that despite the twins’ health issues they are a lot of fun and with the right care will be able to one day live independent lives
Although taking care of the twins is no easy task, her career as a nurse has prepared her to take on the challenge.
Linda gave up her career working as a regular nurse to look after poorly children in her own home back in 1986 and has fostered 16 children since.
‘When I was a little girl I always thought I wanted to be a nurse and take care of babies and kids.
‘It has always been my passion and once I started doing the foster care and teaching other nurses how to provide care I just felt like it was something I was born to do,’ said the nurse, who has three older biological children – Gregory, 27, Patrick, 25 and Marlys, 24 – and three other adoptive children – Ethan, five, Audrey, nine and Shay, ten.
Linda believes that with the right care, which she is determined to give them, the twins have a shot at living independent lives.
She has been with them every step of the way since she began fostering them in 2014, and their adoption was finalized last month.
Registered nurses help her look after Matthew and Marshall and her other adoptive children.
‘They are a lot of hard work but they are also a lot of fun – they are the happiest and smiliest.
‘Almost always if one twin laughs the other twin will automatically laugh as well.
‘Everybody just falls in love with them,’ gushed the proud mom.