A mother from Ireland has been awarded a Guinness World Record for “longest interval between the birth of twins.”

Maria Jones-Elliott gave birth to Amy and Katie 87 days apart, achieving somewhat of a medical miracle. According to the Mirror, she unwittingly beat the previous record by four days.

Twin Amy was born first, and doctors struggled to keep the premature baby alive. She had been born four months before the estimated delivery time.

“Usually you experience nothing but joy at the birth of a new baby, but it was so achingly bitter-sweet as both of their lives hung in the balance.

“Amy was fighting for life in an incubator and Katie was struggling to survive in my womb. It was the hardest three months of our lives. But Chris kept saying, ‘Where there’s life there’s hope,’” Jones-Elliott describes, mentioning the support received from husband Chris.

Maria was at work when she went into labor with older twin Amy, 23 weeks and five days before she was due.

Her water broke after arriving at the hospital, and the girl was born at 24 weeks. At only 1lb 3oz (0.5 kg), she had to fight for her life but ultimately made it.

“I felt unwell at work with extreme pressure on my abdomen but I thought that must be normal as I was having twins. But I was worried enough to get an appointment with my GP who told me to go straight to hospital.

“To my horror when I got there just hours later my waters broke. I was ­immediately admitted.

“They tried to induce me the next day but nothing happened. Eventually Chris and I said enough is enough. Let nature take its course,” the mother describes.

She never thought that she would have to wait another three months to have her second twin in her arms. Both Amy and Katie are now healthy.