Jennifer White and Eddie Roach of Plymouth had spent days joking with their kids about the possibility that the family’s newest member might be born on leap day. Their daughters told riddles and planned out what day their baby sister’s birthday would be celebrated, if born on Feb. 29.
“My 8-year-old was like, ‘What if she’s born on a leap year?’,” Roach said Friday. “And all of us were like, ‘No, that won’t happen!’”
Then White went into labor Wednesday night, two days after her due date. And the next day, Feb. 29, Vivian Rose Roach was born at 2:41 a.m. at Tufts Medical Center.
She was one of eight babies born Thursday at Tufts. In all, Boston-area hospitals reported more than two dozen leap-day babies born this year. The newborns will forever share a unique day on the calendar.
Leap years, which typically occur only once every four years, help keep the calendar in synch. Earth makes a loop around the sun every 365.2421 days. The extra time created an additional day that comes at the end of February every four years, according to the Smithsonian Institution.
The chances of being born on Feb. 29 are about one in 1,461, according to lamaze.org, a birthing organization.
Roach spent Thursday scouring the internet for information on leap-day babies, which he said are often referred to as “leaplings.” He found “all these special little groups” for the leapling community. “As they get older, they celebrate together,” said Roach.
Family members said they were thrilled to see photos and a special message for Vivian on Thursday’s newscast at WCVB-TV, where Roach’s cousin is an executive producer.
“All our friends were like ‘Hey, we saw you on TV!,’” said Roach, who plans to compile news accounts to show to his daughter when she’s older. “I feel like Vivian’s going to be happy when she sees everything.”
One question for the family to decide is whether Vivian’s birthday will be celebrated on Feb. 28 or March 1.
White said that her 8-year-old daughter, whose birthday is in March, is hoping to keep the month to herself.
“We thought it was so funny that Vivian made sure, to help her sister out, she gets born literally the day before March 1,” said Roach.
But even though Vivian came in February, Roach said it makes the most sense for her birthday to be celebrated on March 1. He said he hopes that the publicity will make up for the fact that Vivian won’t always be able to see her birthday on a calendar.
“Without a doubt, every four years, it’s going to be a big deal,” said Roach. “I’m just happy that my wife’s healthy and happy and that the baby’s healthy and happy.”
Leap-year babies also filled up nurseries at other area hospitals.
At Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, seven babies were born on leap day. Brigham and Women’s Hospital welcomed a whopping 13 babies, Newton-Wellesley Hospital welcomed seven, and Cooley Dickinson and Nantucket Cottage hospitals welcomed one baby each.
The dry spell at Martha’s Vineyard Hospital continued through Thursday, as the island’s last leapling was born in 2020. Before that, according to the hospital’s spokesperson, it didn’t have a leap-year birth since 2016, which was its first since 1984.
At Salem Hospital, Malik Kai Lawson was born at 6:44 p.m. to Kelsey Donovan and Justus Lawson of Worcester. Malik was one of four babies born on leap day at the MGB branch, according to the hospital’s spokesperson.
“I was hoping he’d be coming on leap because it’s my first baby,” said Donovan. “Everyone was talking about it, but I didn’t really think it was going to happen.”
Donovan said Malik was due Feb. 21 but ended up surprising the couple on leap day. They’ve already planned a few pranks to play on Malik once he’s old enough to understand the uniqueness of his special day. In the meantime, Donovan said she plans to celebrate her baby’s birthday on Feb. 28.
Then, again, arriving only every four years, a Feb. 29 birthday could have its own reward.
Donovan joked she could “save a lot of money on birthdays.”
Lila Hempel-Edgers can be reached at lila.hempeledgers@globe.com. Follow her on X @hempeledgers and on Instagram @lila_hempel_edgers.