Inside formerly conjoined twins Nima and Dawa’s extra special third birthday
A birthday is a special milestone for any child, but for separated conjoined twins Nima and Dawa it’s more emotional than most. Here’s how the girls spend their big day at home in Bhutan.
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A birthday is a special milestone for any child, but for separated conjoined twins Nima and Dawa it’s a day more emotional than most.
The Bhutanese twins, who were separated by at the Royal Children’s Hospital in a marathon surgery when they were just 15 months old, have celebrated their third birthday on Tuesday.
Proud mum Bhumchu Zangmo said the sisters have thrived in the almost two years since their operation, and have developed a passion for clothes and fashion and love watching cartoons.
They are also learning the alphabet, numbers and colours and enjoy singing and dancing.
Ms Zangmo used the special occasion to thank the Children First Foundation and Royal Children’s hospital for giving her babies a “new life”.
“Nothing makes me happier than to see my girls coming this far when a few years ago, I wasn’t even sure that they would reach this milestone,” she said.
“I am in debt to all the people in Australia for showering us with love and care throughout. It warms my heart and brings tears, remembering the love we received in Australia.”
Children First Foundation chief executive Elizabeth Lodge said it was because of the generosity of Australians who donated to cover the cost of the life-changing surgery that it was possible.
“Together we contributed to saving these little girls lives and giving them hope for a brighter future,” she said.
The foundation also shared video of the sisters celebrating their special day with a number 3 balloon.
The miracle surgery was undertaken by a large team at RCH, which swelled to 25 during parts of the six-hour operation in November 2018.
Doctors worked to separate the girls’ bowel and liver and were overjoyed when the surgery was completed without unexpected complications.
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