‘Our little miracles’ all grown up

By Jemma Jones

Mar 26, 2025

Izaac and Kyah Schade all grown up, headed off to their first day of school. Photo by Contributed

Joining the eager group of new Preps at Grahamvale Primary School this year are twins Kyah and Izaac Schade, whose presence is nothing short of extraordinary.

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Except the extraordinary part isn’t that they look alike and were born on the same day; no, it’s the fact they are not even supposed to be alive.

These miracle babies entered the world at just 24 weeks and five days gestation, nearly four months premature, defying medical odds.

Their parents, Samantha and Simon Schade, described them as just “skin and bones” when they were born.

Their organs were hardly formed, and they relied on an incubator to act as a womb and keep them alive.

Each of the twins were barely the size of Samantha’s hand. Photo by Contributed

It all started at Samantha’s 20-week scan, when a doctor noticed her cervix had shortened to below 2cm.

In a whirlwind week, she had visited two hospitals before landing in Mercy for Women Hospital in Heidelberg, where she spent four months.

She was diagnosed with cervical insufficiency, meaning her cervix dilated too early during pregnancy, which created a 50 per cent chance of having a premature birth.

With twins, she was even more vulnerable.

Just under two weeks after arriving at Mercy for Women, on October 31, 2019, she had an emergency C-section and Kyah and Izaac were born weighing just 665g and 860g, respectively.

Now, five years later, the once-fragile babies proudly donned their school uniforms, tugged on their bags, and with a mix of excitement and nerves, bid a teary farewell to their parents as they embarked on their next big adventure: primary school.

The twins were in hospital for four months after their birth. Photo by Contributed

Mrs Schade emphasised that despite their challenging start, Kyah and Izaac had thrived, enjoying a childhood as vibrant and typical as any of their peers.

“Obviously with parenthood, there is always a few bumps along the road, not nothing that makes it different from any other child being born — even if they were born premature,” she said.

“It’s amazing how far they’ve come, and they’re just normal for now, and you wouldn’t believe where they started from.

“In regards to highlights (with the twins) every little step and every little milestone they reached was huge for us because it was like, oh my god, they’re just doing something we didn’t know they would get to.”

Mr Schade said since they started school, the twins had been getting along in “leaps and bounds”.

“We’re feeling really proud and happy that they’ve reached a pretty big milestone for babies who were born so early.”

Mr Schade said he and his wife felt they were “so lucky” to get where they were today and see them head off to school.

“We understand that we are the lucky ones, that we were able to bring both of our babies home,” he said.

“A lot of people in our situation don’t get to do that ... so it’s been a real joy for Sam and I.”