FOR JOHN, E-MAIL IT BY GOING TO WCCO.COM/LINKS. MINNESOTA DOCTORS CALLED THEM MIRACLE BABIES, JOINED AT THE CHEST. THE TWO WERE SUCCESSFULLY SEPARATED BY A TEAM OF MAYO SURGEONS WHEN THEY WERE 6 MONTHS OLD. NOW, THEY'RE IN THE FOURTH GRADE LIVING IN NORTH DAKOTA. LIZ CAUGHT UP WITH THE GIRLS WHOSE MEDICAL STORY CAPTURED WORLDWIDE ATTENTION. Reporter: TWO GIRLS, TWO CLASSROOMS. COUNTLESS CONTRAST. Reporter: SISTERS THAT SHARE AN INFECTIOUS SPUNK. BUT IF YOU ASK THEM, NOT MUCH MORE. LIKE EVERY NIGHT WE'RE WORKING, AND I, IN OUR ROOM, LIKE HOW DO PEOPLE GET IT MIXED UP? Reporter: THE IDENTICAL TWINS, THE ONLY WAY THEY'VE KNOWN LIFE TO BE. I CAN'T REMEMBER IT. Reporter: THEY SPENT THEIR FIRST SIX MONTHS IN MINNESOTA HOSPITAL ROOMS. SISTERS CONJOINED AT BIRTH. ISABELLE'S HEART MORE INTO ABBEY'S CHEST, AND OTHER OREGONS TWISTED TOGETHER -- ORGANNED TWISTED TOGETHER. Reporter: THE TEAMS TRAPPED FOR MONTHS FOR THE MARATHON SEPARATION SURGERY. YOU HAVE A CARDIAC TEAM, A LEVER TEAM, BIO PANCREAS TEAM, THE PLASTIC SURGERY TEAM, AND THEN DOUBLE THEM, BECAUSE THESE TWO PATIENTS. DOCTORS SEEM PRETTY CONFIDENT. I'M EMOTIONAL. Reporter: MAY 12, 2006. 12 HOURS, 17 SURGEONS. THE SEPARATION IS COMPLETE, AND THERE ARE TWO BEAUTIFUL LITTLE GIRLS. Reporter: TWO WEEKS LATER, THEY WENT HOME TO NORTH DAKOTA, AS TWO. A LOT OF OUR PRAYERS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED. Reporter: THE PARTS HAVE WATCHED -- PARENTED HAVE WATCHED THEM GROW INTO GIGLY GIRLS. I'M QUIET! NO, I AM. AND COMPETITION. I'M BETTER THAN HER. I'M BETTER THAN HER! THEY DON'T WANT TO EVERY BE CONFUSED FOR EACH OTHER. THEY ARE THEIR OWN PERSON. YOU DIDN'T CATCH IT. IN THEIR CLASSROOMS, THE CARLSONS ARE ISABELLE AND ABBEY, ONLY A SMALL NECKLACE SERVES AS A ONE IN A MILLION REMINDER. I CAN'T IMAGINE HOW ACTIVE THEY ARE, NOTHING STOPS THEM. WHAT EVIDENCE DO I WANT? ISABELLE? IT PROVES THAT YOU DID IT. THEY ARE ACADEMICALLY ON AN ADVANCED LEVEL. SOCIALLY, THEY LIKE EVERYONE. Reporter: THERE ARE DISCUSS HE WILL SIGNS OF THE TIME THEY -- SUBTLE TIMES OF THE TIMES THEY WERE JOINED. YOU SEE THE ONE HANDS LOOKING FOR HER SISTER, LIKE JUST MOVING. YEAH, I'VE SEEN THAT. Reporter: WHAT'S EASIER TO SEE IS THE FREEDOM THAT ONCE SEEMED FAR OFF. AND A GRATEFUL FAMILY FOR WHAT HAPPENED A DECADE AGO, ONE STATE AWAY. WORDS CAN'T EXPRESS HOW THANKFUL I AM FOR WHAT THEY DID FOR OUR GIRLS. IT'S JUST PRICELESS. UNTIL A FEW YEARS AGO, THE GIRLS WORE PROTECTIVE CLOTHING ON THEIR CHEST, IT WAS A BIGGER CONCERN FOR ISABELLE, SINCE SHE HAD JUST A THIN LAYER OF SKIN OVER HER HEART. DOCTORS REPLACED IT WITH A GORTEX PATCH. THEY WILL BE BACK AT THE MAYO CLINIC THIS SUMMER FOR A CHECK UP.
