Mom of Twins With Different Complexions Says 'They're My Miracle Girls'
"It has nothing to do with their color," mom Whitney Meyer told ABC News.
— -- Nine-month-olds Kalani and Jarani are gaining attention around the globe for their unique distinction as fraternal twins.
Kalani was born with light skin and blue eyes, while her sister Jarani, who's five minutes younger, has brown skin and brown eyes.
"They're my miracle girls," mom Whitney Meyer told ABC News today. "It has nothing to do with their color. I lost a child and a year-and-a-half later, I gained twins. I just wanted to share it and it's been crazy ever since."
"Never in a million years would I [have] imagined" having a daughter with blue eyes and a lighter complexion, dad Tomas Dean told ABC News.
The family lives in Quincy, Illinois, with big brother Talan. Meyer said she always dresses Kalani and Jarani the same.
"If I don't, people don't believe that they are twins," she said.
Dr. Angela Bianco, a board certified maternal fetal medicine specialist at Mount Sinai Hospital, told ABC News that it's a "pretty rare occurrence" having twins that look very different.
"It certainly can happen with biracial couples and it's really just a matter of chance," Bianco said. "By virtue of chance, one twin can inherit more DNA from a specific parent in contrast to its co-twin and that DNA can code or translate for things like skin color and eye color and can then result in very different physical attributes."
While they look different now, mom and dad said their daughters still have distinct character traits.
"Kalani, she has more of a personality like her mother," Dean said. "Jay's more just set back and she's kind of like me."
Whitney added: "They are so different in their personalities. One has a lot of energy and one is more laid back."