14/11/2025
“I Wouldn’t Trade Them for Anything”: Mom Celebrates Life With Rare Twin Girls With Down Syndrome
Savannah Combs welcomed her twin daughters, Kennadi and Mckenli Ackerman, on May 12, 2021 — two months early. Soon after, she learned both girls have Down syndrome, a combination so rare doctors estimate it occurs in only one in one to five million twin pregnancies.
Savannah chose to forgo invasive prenatal testing, focusing instead on the joy of each appointment. “Every checkup where they were alive was a blessing,” she recalls. Their father, Justin Ackerman, was emotional at the diagnosis, while Savannah says she was simply “happy they were here.”
Now, the family of four is thriving. The twins attend physical and occupational therapy twice a week and are “hitting milestones like no other,” Savannah shares. The sisters already have distinct personalities: Kennadi is “a ray of sunshine,” while Mckenli is “a total diva.”
Savannah also uses social media to challenge misconceptions about Down syndrome. “They have feelings. They have a beating heart. They’ll talk, learn, and do what other kids do—maybe a step behind, but they’ll get there,” she says. In a post that resonated widely, she wrote, “I wouldn’t trade my extra-chromosome girls for anything. Mama loves you so much.”
Her message is clear: children with Down syndrome deserve the same dignity, love, and expectations as any other child.