The South Dakota mom thought it was kidney stones that were the cause of her pain when she made the trip to the hospital earlier this month. It wouldn’t have been the first time. It came as a shock when the couple learned they were about to welcome some new members into the family.
A couple of 12 years, Dannette and Austin Giltz rushed to the hospital in the small town of Sturgis.
“I started getting pains, I figured it was kidney stones because I’ve went through them before,” said Dannette.
They quickly learned from the doctor that it wasn’t kidney stones at all; Dannette was in fact going into labor—not just that, but the doctor told them that she was having twins!
“His reaction is like, ‘excuse me, put it back, no, I was told I have twins, I’m not doing triplets,’” recounted Dannette. “She’s like, ‘no, there’s three babies in here, there’s triplets.’”
But there was no putting the baby back. The three brand-new siblings were christened Blaze, Gypsy, and Nikki. What was formerly a family of 4 is now a family of 7.
Yet, what was most incredible of all was how Dannette had gotten 34 weeks into her pregnancy somehow without being even slightly aware of it, right up to the point of labor and giving birth. She was still in shock even as they welcomed their new babies into the world.
“You don’t ever see triplets being conceived naturally, let alone going 34 weeks without knowing,” Dannette told WKYT in an interview. “So, everyone’s like I can’t believe it. We’re still in shock, trust me.
“I go to the doctor’s thinking I'll have surgery for kidney stones and end up going into labor with a C-section that night. It’s crazy.”
The added burden of three more mouths to feed might have overwhelmed the parents had it not been for the support of their community. The Giltzes say they are grateful and that probably no place other than the Black Hills Community would have been so supportive.
“It’s amazing in a small town how many people will come together for stuff that’s not expected,” said Dannette.
On the other hand, far from being a burden, the news came in answer to one family member’s prayers. Ronnie Giltz, the couple’s son, had been wishing for a few new siblings.
“One time I saw a shooting star and I wished for a baby brother,” said Ronnie, “and I wished for like two sisters for my little sister because she always wanted a little sister, I knew this day was always going to come.”
Ronnie got his wish answered, and then some.
