Strangers often do a double take when they see Whitney Meyer out with her twin daughters Kalani and Jarani. But Meyer completely understands. The 25-year-old mom from Quincy, Illinois, had the same reaction when she first laid eyes on her little girls on April 23, 2016. Kalani was born with fair skin and light eyes like her mother, while Jarani has a darker complexion like her dad, Tomas Dean, who is black.
While it’s extremely rare, the BBC reported in 2011 that interracial couples expecting twins have a 1 in 500 chance that their children will be born with different skin colors.
“One time Tomas and I went out to eat and our waitress thought Jarani was his and Kalani was mine,” Meyer tells Us Weekly. “People always have so many questions and want to take pictures. Nobody believes they are twins!”
The 18-month-old toddlers wear identical ensembles every day (even their pajamas are the same!), but Meyer says that’s where the similarities end. “Kalani is our very active child. She is on the go all the time and would be happy playing with balls all day,” Meyer tells Us. “J is more chill, more laid back. She loves to eat and play with her baby dolls. She’s like the mother hen.”
Kalani and Jarani were born less than two years after Meyer lost her 2-year-old son, Pravyn, in a drowning tragedy. “They are my miracle babies,” Meyer told Us previously. “J looks exactly like her brother did. They are identical. When I look at pictures of J, I see Pravyn.”
