ACCORDING to medics, the chances of having twin boys followed by twin girls is rarer than being struck by lightning.
So it makes sense that Jessica Phoenix and Liam McMahon, both 23, were utterly gobsmacked when they found out they were pregnant with twins for the second time.
The couple, from Kent, first found out they were expecting twin boys just six months into their relationship, admitting they "weren't very good" with contraceptives.
But two years later, when boys Harry and Elijah were two years old, Jessica found out she was expecting twins again - this time girls.
In September, Jessica gave birth to Phoebe and Aria, with doctors telling them the pregnancies - which were both unplanned - were rarer than being struck by lightning.
"My first words were 'oh no, not again'," joked Jessica.
"As soon as we told people they thought we were joking; nobody would believe us.
"It wasn't until I put a photo of the scans of both of them on Facebook that I think people really believed us.
"It might not be what we had planned when we first met but we’ve got our whole family done and dusted in the space of a few years.
"Two boys, two girls, two sets of twins – it’s just the perfect package.
"We’re the perfect family to me and it feels meant to be.
"It was four unexpected babies, but now I wouldn’t change it for the world."
"To think that I’m a dad of four does feel pretty crazy," dad Liam added.
"People my age are usually living at home with their mum and dad, just thinking about going out or going to uni.
"Having them has made me want to do more in my life. It makes me want to make them proud."
Jessica revealed her twin boys love being big brothers and are "very protective and loving" over their little sisters.
"Bringing the girls home to the boys was a lovely moment," she said.
"The boys are really good with them. The first couple of days it was a bit of a novelty, but we soon found our feet.
"The boys will run around and help, fetching nappies or things, and they are very protective and loving."
"The other day Harry had a little go at me because I picked up Aria and she started to cry and told me to put her down," Jessica continued.
"They are really good big brothers.
"With the first twins we hadn't been together long.
"But this time around we've done it before and we were strong, so people were much more congratulatory.
"In some ways it has been easier. We had done it all before, we knew roughly how much it was going to cost and we were more prepared.
"The best thing I learned was to get in as much sleep as possible before they arrived and I started going to bed at about 7pm because I knew that I wasn't going to get long lie ins for a very long time!"
