My Son Brooks....mmm!...mmmm!

Watch out ladies, this boy loves to kiss!

Recently, Brooks learned how to request a kiss without saying a word. Not to worry though, he is not after any of his little friends in the nursery, his lips belong to his momma. Every night, as we put the boys down to sleep and begin to leave the room, we hear a mmmm! mmmm! mmmm! coming from behind us. Brooks always wants a kiss from his momma before bed, it is so adorable, and of course, I think he melts Jen's heart. Even after a kiss, we sometimes have to leave the room with his continual mmm! running behind us. He would kiss her all night if that meant he could stay up probably, I love that boy so much!

Brooks came screaming into our world at a mere 3lbs. 0 oz. This poor boy was squashed with Clark on top of him, Isaac pushing in from the side, and Henry right below for months. Due to this unfortunate configuration, his little head was smashed like a pancake. It was quite worrysome as a new dad, but they assured me he would be fine, and his head was pretty round by the time he left the hospital, and perfect now. After birth, Brooks had a miraculously uneventful stay in the NICU. He was breathing on his own for part of the first day, then put on CPAP for a day or so, and finally removed from machines for good. He was so healthy, that in spite of the fact that he only weighed 3lbs. 14 oz., and was only 3 weeks old, they sent him home with us.

Little Brooks on homecoming day!

Brooks has such a cute, fun personality. He is more verbally introverted than any of his brothers. He expresses most of his emotions with his mouth closed, muffling his cries, laughs, and complaints, it is so cute. Brooks has been a leader in mobility milestones since the beginning. He crawled first, pulled up first(at 8 months), walked first, and is now nearing the running stage.

Brooks has more wonderful qualities than I could even begin to describe, but I love the was he smiles with his mouth closed. I love the way he picks his little feet up as he tromps around the house. I love his cute little legs. I laugh as I look back and remember how he initiated us as first-time parents by falling asleep when we tried to feed him. I love how he kisses his momma, it melts daddy's heart too. I love his cute, dark brown eyes. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, the way he dances every single time he hears music of any kind. I miss the way his right leg would bounce up and down when he cried as a preemie. I love holding him on my lap and reading him books, I love seeing him curled up beside Clark in his crib, fast asleep in his little camo sleep sack. I LOVE to hold his hand and walk him around the house, and I love that he loves it too!

I love my Brooks, and all of my boys, in a way I could not have even imagined 16 months ago. I am so proud to be your daddy Brooks, and I cherish every single day I get with you. At 8 weeks of pregnancy, when we found out you existed, I gave your tiny life to God, as I knew it would be His job alone to bring you safely to my arms. And, in spite of the fact that many doctors warned us that this was unlikely to happen, it did, and I will forever be grateful for getting to hold you for the first time, safe and sound, 16 months ago.

I love you Brooksy buddy, your daddy will always love you.

Related Posts:

My Son Henry

My Son Isaac

My Son Clark

Just Breathe....

Thank you for your prayers over the past few days. Things are improving daily with just a few bumps along the way. Brooks has been entertaining us with his speed steroids extremes. One minute he is stoned and out of it, the next he is frustrated by his failed attempts to scale the walls, literally! He has this impulsiveness of needing to climb all of the sudden. It's completely bizarre! He takes his last dose tonight, so hopefully we will see some of the true Brooks shining through those donut eyes soon.

Baby Einstein has come to our rescue once again as a distracting device during our time in the breathing chair. Check out the "wigged out" Brooks getting "nebulized"....

Thankfully the other boys' symptoms are fairly minor for now. Clark has exhibited some wheezing, so he's getting his turn in the breathing chair as well. Don't you think he'd make a great firefighter someday?

Translation in case you don't speak "one year old":
"Whas Da?" w/ pointer finger = What's That? (We think, anyway!)
Regardless it's cute, especially muffled. =)

Breathing easier,

Safe and Sound....

I'm relieved to report that Brooks is tucked in at HOME! We are so grateful to be here safe and sound, after a nightmare night of 2 Emergency Rooms, 1 Urgent Care, and 1 Earthquake! We have been blessed by your prayers and concern and would request that you continue to pray for us during the next few days. Brooks' is still a pretty sick little dude, but his O2 saturation is much improved from last night and overall it looks like he's turning the corner. He is on a "full meal deal" of steroids, breathing treatments, and antibiotics here at Casa de Murray. We have so much to be grateful for tonight!

Here are a few pictures of sweet Brooksy during the last 24 hours +Prayer Requests Following

Finally Getting Some Shut-Eye

Sleeping Through a Breathing Treatment

Caged yet Cuddly

Brooks Unplugged Plugged In and Recharged!

Peace Out Peds Unit, Hello Home!

Here are some specific requests that you could be praying for:
*For Brooks' lungs to open up and to allow air in with ease
*For his side-effects from the meds to be small
*For a GOOD NIGHTS SLEEP for the whole fam. (I'm operating on about 1 1/2 hours of broken sleep; Brad not much more to brag about)
*For Henry, Clark, and Isaac to remain healthy
*For us to glorify God in our circumstances regardless of the challenges we face.
*For Brad and I to continue to have patience with each other

Update On The Brooks

Thank you all for your prayers and comments, we really appreciate it.

Brooks stayed the night in the Ped. unit since he needed some oxygen support. So far, no clear diagnosis, but it is some kind of respiratory illness, and they are treating it as pneumonia.

God has been so good to us in providing the help that we need so that Jen and I can both be here with Brooks. Also, praise God with us that Brooks has been protected from harm and is in great medical care. We are so thankful for the nurses, respiratory therapists, and doctors here.

Please continue to pray for Brooks to get well, and for protection from this illness for Isaac, Henry, and Clark.

Brad

PRAYERS

Brooks has just been admitted to the hospital with respiratory issues. Brad is with him and I'm on the way there now....We'd appreciate your prayers. God is sovereign. I'll update as soon as I can....
Jen

Wombmates Remain Cribmates

Unbelievable. Yep, it's true. The Wombmates are still Cribmates. 14 Months Old Today and Clark and Brooks are still sharing their crib. (Isaac and Henry each sleep in their own cribs.) It just gets cuter all the time. Take a look:

14 Months is the longest we've ever heard of anyone co-bedding so we'll be giving Guinness a call to see if we can get in! (Kidding) Someday when you're flipping through the pages, looking at world records for the longest eyebrow hair, the most weddings attended by a best man, most coconuts smashed in one minute, or the world's tallest parsley plant there they'll be precious as precious can be....

If not the award for world's longest co-bedders perhaps the world's sweetest?????

To see our history of co-bedding quads go here.

Oops! He Did It Again!

I'd like to begin by thanking my son, Henry, for providing such great blogging material. He is the creator behind this post and the film.

You may recall that Henry has a fascination for toy boxes (click highlighted text to see previous encounters). Brooks first introduced him to "life inside the box" and Henry quickly joined the elite Toy Box Diving Club.

Unfortunately for the divers, the "pool" was taken over by a new wall-mounted, sturdy storage bins....(pictured)

...but Where There's a WILL There's a HENRY!

(To those in the Henry Fan Club, he's perfectly fine here...just frustrated that the toy box is limiting his climbing ability, but I'm sure he thanks you for your concern.)

Here's the old file footage of Henry's Toy Box Initiation in December:

Hats off to your creativity and great sportsmanship (even if it is forced), Henry!

Name That Quad! - Part Deux

Your comments in the Part One post shows that every name has a story! Thanks for sharing your name origins with us - I've enjoyed these posts!

So last post I shared the HOW....now on to each individual name and story to go with it - the WHO! (I'll be using some quotes from a sweet friend, Kathy, who created a handmade card for us shortly after the birth of our boys with their names, meanings, and a verse to compliment the meaning. I'm not sure what name book she used, so hopefully if she's reading she'll leave a comment revealing her source.)

Let me preface this by saying that Brad and I had a few Naming Rules. These were simply personal preferences. I am not in any way slamming your kids names if they fit into any of these criteria....=)

1. They couldn't rhyme or be "sing-song cute".
2. They needed to be non-trendy; Traditional, yet distinct.
3. They needed to be names that were complete in itself - not needing to be shortened to a nickname (This rule was obviously meant to be broken...keep reading!)
4. They (at least some of them) needed to have a family link.
5. They couldn't rhyme with "Murray"....That eliminated furry, hurry, and Suri!

In Birth Order:

HENRY SAMUEL

Henry - A name we both agreed on and since Henry was only 2 lbs. 12 oz. "Isaac" just didn't fit him!
Meaning: Trusted
Psalm 37:23 "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way."

Samuel - We really liked the Biblical heritage of Samuel as well as the meaning of the name (Check out I Samuel Chapter 1)
Meaning: God heard
I Samuel 1:20 "Hannah gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked him of the Lord."

Nicknames: H-Sam, Henry Dickory Dock, Hen, HEN-ERR-EEE (3 syllables like my TX Friend Pam says it), Heners, Show Boat, Small Fry, 2-12, Buddy

BROOKS LAYTON

Brooks - A name that we threw out there and then ended up falling in love with
Meaning: Refreshed
Zechariah 2:10 "Sing for joy and be glad O daughter of Zion; for behold I am coming and I will dwell in your midst."

Layton - A family name on my mom's side, but mostly chosen because we just liked it
Meaning: From the Meadow Land =)
Psalm 23:1-2 "The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters."

Nicknames: Brooksy, Brooks A Million, Little b, Brooksalufigus, Stinky (with all my affection), Buddy

Clark Thomas and Isaac Edward will be explained in detail tomorrow. It's getting late and lengthy....On To Part 3 Tomorrow!

AND While You're Waiting on Me to Return You can Discuss the Meaning of Your Name (or your baby(ies)) and Any Naming Rules You had/have for Your Kids!

Small Steps...And Giant Leaps!

This week has been quite the "leap" for our crew. In the spirit of leap year, Isaac started pulling up on everything, Henry is climbing to the top of the slide by himself, Clark is getting more stable at cruising, and Brooks has taken several steps! Everyday is quite the adventure!

(Don't mind Henry's noggin' trying to steal the show in the video.)

Keeping with the astronaut theme check out Brad and I being goofs over the weekend. "Houston I think we need a larger helmet."

Visions of Sugar-Plums...

"The children were nestled all snug in their beds,While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads"

Clement Moore must have had this vision in his mind when he wrote "A Visit From St. Nicholas" or more commonly "Twas The Night Before Christmas". He's got a great middle name, he just spells it wrong -Clarke! There's some Christmas trivia for your next holiday party, courtesy of the quatro mama!

I can hardly believe these little "wombmates" are still "cribmates" at 10 1/2 months! They just love being together! People keep asking when we're going to separate them (Brooks and Clark) and I guess the answer is, "When it doesn't work anymore.". I mean, who could ask for more? - They sleep 12 hours at night, take good naps, and are just sooooo precious all curled up beside each other! After my post on co-bedding I had several comments and conversations with other moms of multiples about how they co-bedded until one day they started climbing on top of each other. Clark doesn't seem to mind....

So until it quits working, we'll savor these moments. Besides, it's one less crib sheet and mattress cover to change (one of my least favorite chores) and wash!

Comic Relief....

RSV has given us enough grief this week and we haven't even contracted it (see our previous post)! With all the calling to insurance companies, doctor's offices, emailing other parents of preemies, etc. we were ready for some comic relief. Thanks, Brooks, for "diving in" to help us out!

I am a mean father, I know, but when I looked up to see what Brooks was crying about, I almost fell over laughing. I had to run and get the camera before I helped him out!

P.S. Coming up this week we will be unveiling our new project mentioned previously. In fact, Jen hopes to deliver a package this weekend related to it! What could it be? Stay tuned......

4 Hour Shiftaroo

Sorry for my delay in blogging, but we are trying out the 4 hour schedule with the boys, meaning we have bumped up their feeds and their "waketime" so it's 4 hours between each feeding . It's always a challenge when you switch something in quadworld, but so far it's a go. The boys are eating between 7-8 oz a feeding now! That's almost 2 cans of formula a day! I think Brad and I calculated the other day that it cost about 7 dollars each time we feed the little birds (over 30 buckaroos a day). Isn't that incredible? There's no way we could do it without all the help we've received and we are soooooooooo thankful daily for our stockpile of diapers, along with many other blessings. We can't thank you all enough, so we will continue to thank you on this blog!

We are still thrilled that we aren't taking care of a post-surgery Brooks right now. We all celebrated Friday with a walk along the canal, downtown Indy. Perfect weather - low 80's with a breeze, not your typical July Indiana weather. We discovered that the canal is a great place to take the boys, because people are on the move. Let me explain myself.......when you have quads, like it or not, you are on constant display and interview mode. It's like we wear a t-shirt saying, "Ask us anything that comes to your head, don't worry nothing is off limits". While we love sharing the boys with everyone, and love sharing the story that the Lord has given, it definately makes you chuckle at some of the reactions and questions we get. You want examples? Oh alright....

• Are those triplets? Sextuplets? Whatever they're called
• You've got 2 sets of twins?
• Are they all yours?
• I hope you're done (having kids)
• That'll teach you what to pray for
• (In an Indiana hillbilly tone) D'jew take dem shots?
• And our personal favorite that we hear AT LEAST 10 times an outing: YOU'VE GOT YOUR HANDS FULL!

A girl even ran into a sign one day because she was walking and trying to look back at our babies at the same time. Anyway, it's a hoot, but it does get difficult at times to get from point A to point B. Needless to say, the canal was a very enjoyable walk, because we only got stopped a handful of times, since people are on paddleboats, bikes, even segways. By the time they counted all the babies in the strollers, they had already passed us!

We've been blessed this summer with visits with friends. A great suprise visit was from our friends, the Mathisons who have been in East Asia for the past few years. Amy was my Bible study leader/accountability partner during college.They are dear friends to us. It was wonderful to see their growing family and squeeze them in person.

Some other extra special guests include another set of quad parents, the Benners. We first met them at our first appointment with our high risk doctor during the pregancy. I believe I was about 10 weeks pregnant, and both Brad and I were tremendously anxious about not only having quads, but the mono-mono situation for Clark and Brooks. (If you are new to this "mono" language, Brad posted a great explanation in December on our pregancy blog.) Denise and her quad squad were getting their pictures taken for a brochure for our doctor's office, since she had such an amazing pregnancy. I tease her that she's the "postermom for quads". Just to see 4 healthy babies crawling up on her lap was a realization to us that this was truly possible. God has really used them in our lives as an encouragment and a tremendous resource to bounce questions off of sometimes weekly. It was great to have them love on our babies.

Speaking of quads, please continue to pray for Suzanne. She is hours away from 28 weeks! Remarkable! She is hangin' tough and enduring her hospital stay. Let me tell you from experience hospital bedrest is extremely difficult. Hands down the hardest thing I've had to endure. Please pray for her little ones Ben, Andrew, Savannah, and Ethan to develop and enter this world safely - specifically that their little lungs would start developing, that Suzanne could have the strength and sanity to keep pressing on, for God to give her husband Joe courage, wisdom, and strength for today and days ahead, and that their story would bring glory to God.

Friends and family are so valuable to us these days. It's been a challenge to stay "connected", but please know that we love you all!

Hope you enjoy the pictures - does that bring back any memories from the ole viewmaster days? Personally, I loved The Incredible Hulk reel. What was your favorite?

A GINORMOUS Praise!!!!!

We went to the hospital today to have Brooks examined because Brad noticed that his hernia had really changed in appearance recently. We were hopeful that perhaps the severity had decreased and that we could postpone the surgery until Brooks was at least a year old, since he would have to go under general anesthesia and just the trauma of a surgery at his age. After talking to the surgical nurse, she assured us that it would be something to consider, but would be highly unlikely to get better or go away on its own. We really felt like since we have 3 other boys to compare him to, it would be worth looking into before taking him in Friday morning for surgery. We had awesome news after the pediatric urologist read the ultrasounds and examined our Brooks. Praise God - his hernia has disappeared! We are amazed once again that the God that we serve can do the IMPOSSIBLE! Thank you so much for your faithful prayers - we are so grateful!
Rejoicing Together,
Brad, Jen and the BOYZ

Catching You Up....

Alright, so where should I start?????? Let's just start with the boys and what they've been up to.....We have a doctor's appointment today, their 4 month appointment - can you believe it? 4 shots a piece for a grand total of 16 shots and 8 bandaides. Ouch! We will be Tylenoling (yes, it's now a verb) all night. There's a specific prayer request for ya! I'll try to get on and update you on weights. We look forward to that part!

Let's see....the boys are growing and are so much fun each day. Especially now that they are all smiling up a storm, it makes you feel like, "hey, he likes me". Everytime one of them smiles it makes my day over and over. What a blessing! They are sleeping about 9 hours on average a night, with an occasional pacifer run. Whoohooo! It was hard work, but it's now paying off. We are such better parents with a good nights sleep and we are so thankful for some real shut-eye! Their day consists of feedings every 3 hours, playtime, and naptime. They enjoy their bouncy seats, boppies, and gym mostly. Here's a short run down of what they are doing individually.

Henry: Henry has been showing that he still is the oldest by rolling over, (which is quite an accomplishment for a 2 month old (adjusted age)). He loves to do his trick in his bed, while he should be sleeping! Occasionally he rolls into his big brother Isaac, which he isn't too fond of, but we are keeping them in 2 cribs for as long as possible. The crib dividers maybe just around the corner, though. Henry smiles with his whole face - too cute. He has such a sweet personality.








This Henry right after he rolled over for the first time!



Brooks: Brooks continues to be laid back and go with the flow. He likes to smile most when you're feeding him, which is very cute, but a bit frustrating when you are trying to feed 4 babies! He's been figuring out how to bat at his toys and loves to look at his brothers. He curls up with Clark in the middle of the night - so cute!





Clark on the left, Brooks on the right. Yes, we really can tell them apart! Promise!








Clark: Clark loves to kick (this started way back in wombville). He was definately my most active one in there. He loves to hang upside down by kicking backwards in his boppie. He has a wonderful grin and is quite the happy boy when you wake him up from his nap. He has rolled over once in the boppie and once in his crib - we'll see if he keeps that up! He's also quite the cuddler.

Isaac: Isaac is the talker of the bunch. He makes noise from sleeping to waking. I'm thinking he might be immitating his cousin Jonathan. He loves to smile and coo at you while you talk to him. He just loves to eat! Isaac loves to be held and loved on.

Isaac showing off his big ole cheeks and no neck!




They each have their own personality, as you can see. Hope you enjoyed my little update.

More blogging later,
Quatro Mama and the Gang!

New pics, update

Friends and Family,



I wanted to give you a quick update on our family.



The boys continue to grow and fill our lives with joy each day. It seems like one or more of them does something new each day as they develop before our eyes. It is neat to see each one of them already going in different directions and doing different things.



We had our first virus/bacteria go through the house this weekend. Jen and I decided to take the boys to babies r us on Saturday afternoon so that we could pick up some things that we needed. These outings have all gone well so far, so we were excited to get out again. Well, the boys decided to make this trip a little more interesting. After about 20 minutes inside the store, I looked down and noticed that Isaac had spit up "cottage cheese" all over himself from his formula feeding two hours prior. I had never seen anything quite like this spit-up. It was not pleasant, but I was able to clean him up without having to change his clothes.



Next, I met back up with Jen on the other side of the store. Just as I approached her double stroller, I noticed Clark had just had a similar spit-up, only his was HUGE. It got all over the carseat, him, his clothes, etc. We had to pull him out and change him in order to get everything reasonalbly cleaned up. By the time we got all that done, it was time for the boys to eat.



Babies r us has a nice "mothers room" where you can feed your baby/babies. Jen and I took that room over and fed the boys there. After about a 40 minute feeding/scream fest, we were done and resumed our shopping. By the time we left the store it was almost 8pm and Jen and I were starved. We had underestimated how much time it would take to get in and out of the store, so we cancelled the rest of our plans and decided to hit the drive-thru and head for home.



When we arrived home, Brooks decided that he would join the fun and he spit-up all over his carseat and himself. During the 9pm feeding, Clark spit-up (projectile style) all over Jens shirt, the chair, her shorts, and even managed to get sprayed in the mouth.



After taking Brooks' temperature, we realized that our boys had been infected with our first bug! In some ways, we were releived that there was a reason for our crazy night, but we were disappointed that Brooks was sick. He had a temperature of 100.0 and was very fussy along with his brothers. Our doctor instructed us to take him to the hospital if it reached 101.0 or higher. Brooks was the only one to run a fever, but they all seemed to have it. At 3am, Brooks' temperature hit 101 and I headed to the hospital with him. The docs at the hospital took some blood, gave him an antibiotic shot, and sent us back home. Brooks has not run a fever since Sunday morning, so hopefully it was just a quick bug. They are all kind of congested, but nothing serious at this point.



Anyway, I just thought I would share a bit of the craziness with you. As for Brooks, he is now scheduled for hernia surgery on July 13th. After his sonogram, it was determined that the hernia does pose some risk to his health if left long-term, so they are going to fix it. We are a little nervous about it, but overall it is an easy surgery and should not be too risky. We would appreciate any prayers that could be offered on his behalf.



I have posted some new pictures below. I cannot tell you how fun the past few months have been for Jen and I. Yes, it is exhausting, but the rewards far outweigh the struggles with the daily grind. Thank you all for your continued prayers and support for our family. We love you all.



Brad, Jen, Henry, Brooks, Clark, and Isaac

Back to the blog.....sorry for the blog vacation!

Friends and Family:

Hello from the Murray family!

I am sorrry for the delay in adding a new post to the website. As you can imagine, life has changed dramatically for Jen and I. I have found it difficult to find the time to give everyone an update, and when I have had a chance, I have been overwhelmed because of how many things there are to tell you about.

First, Jen and the boys are doing really well. As many of you have seen, Jen is back to her beautiful self, both physically and emotionally, and our boys are growing like weeds already! I cannot beleive that my little preemie sons are now 8-10+ pounds and doing so well. In the past two months, God has shown Jen and I how he intended to provide for us once the boys arrived. We have yet to purchase a single diaper or anything else for the boys. I had no idea how we were going to afford to raise our boys, and I still don't, but God has placed his hand of provision on our family and blessed us in a mighty way through your generosity.

A little about our new family:

Henry:

Henry, who is still our smallest, probably weighs in the vicinity of 8 pounds these days. Since starting life at 2lbs. 12 ounces, he has grown into his skin and is plumping up nicely. I am excited to see Henry's personality reveal itself further in the coming months. He does his own thing and rarely follows his brother's examples. Henry has continued to have miraculous health. Along with his brothers, he has had no illnesses, but he also has continued to grow and eat and give us very little worries about his health.

Brooks:

Brooks has been fun to watch since bringing him home in February. He came home weighing less than four pounds, but now is about nine pounds. As I mentioned in previous postings, Brooks has a hernia that we are watching, but his pediatric urologist seems to think that it will close on its own in the coming months. Please pray that this will happen, then we would be able to avoid surgery. The only other issue that we are dealing with daily with Brooks is his projectile spit-up. Many parents have told us their own stories of babies with this issue. As long as he is gaining weight, this is not a health concern for him. But, I think Jen and I should buy some stock in Resolve cleaner, as Brooks is trying to stain every peice of furniture and carpet we own! :) Brooks is a calm little boy and a pure joy to watch develop.

Clark:

Clark has not looked back since leaving the hospital in March. All of our concerns for him as we brought him home have turned into relief as he has thrived. He truely is our little superman. Clark has joined Brooks in having problems with projectile spit-ups, giving us plenty of messes to clean up. In fact, little Clark decided it was payback time last week. Brooks spit-up right in Clark's face a couple of weeks ago as I left for work. So, a few days ago, while laying in their cribs, Clark nailed Brooks in the face, making them even. Neither were very happy when they were rudely awaked from their sleep by about three ounces of formula in the face coming from their brother! The boys now seem to be getting along fine, please pray that this fight is settled! :)

Isaac:

Isaac is still the tank. Born a whopping four pounds, we are now guessing that he has left 10 pounds in the dust. We go tomorrow for a weight check, so we will know for sure then. Isaac is the most vocal of the Murray Crew. (except for me of course) Isaac makes noise when he is sitting in his bouncy seat, when he is eating, and even when he is sleeping. Jen and I lay awake one night a week or so ago listening to him make a little sigh noise over and over. I worried that he might be weazing or something, so I went in to check on him. After leaning in close, it was clear that it was just his voice, making little ahhh sounds as he exhaled. I have a feeling once he learns to talk, we may never experience silence again! (he gets this honestly from his father)

Well, I have also attached some pictures below. These are not really up to date, but they are as up-to-date as I have on my flash drive. I will post more later and I hope to post a little more often now.

We love you all, thank you for your love and support, our God is so good.

Brad, Jen, Henry, Brooks, Clark, and Isaac

Our two double strollers, thank you RCI!

From the left: Brooks, Isaac, Henry, and Clark

From the left: Isaac, Henry, Clark, and Brooks

Clark and Brooks

Brooks and Clark

Top to bottom: Henry and Isaac

Isaac

Formula for one month!

Update:

Friends and Family:

Sorry it has been a while since the blog has been updated, but as you can imagine, the daily grind has taken most of our time recently. But, the pace has been tolerable thanks to a bunch of awesome help that we have received from many different places. Brownsburg schools employees and our church members along with some other friends and family have made the first couple weeks of caring for four babies a lot of fun. It is so awesome to have the reality of our four children in our home for the past two weeks. God has an great plan for these little guys and I am excited that the journey into their lives has begun.

Today, we went to the pediatrician for a check-up and the dreaded two month immunization shots. Each of our boys received four shots, two in each thigh and really did great with them. They each cried during the actual shot, but our nurse, Kim, did an skillful job of making it quick and they quickly settled down in our arms.

We also got new measurements and weights for our boys. They continue to have incredible growth and weight gain with each passing week. Our pediatrician, Dr. Kersteff, said that the goal is 1oz. per day average weight gain and our boys continue to average closer to 2oz. per day.

One minor setback was found with Brooks this morning. He appears to have a lower abdominal hernia that will need to be repaired. We are setting up an appointment to have him looked at in the very near future. This is not a serious problem and is causing Brooks no pain or ill effects, but it will need to be fixed soon. Please pray that this problem would have an easy solution and no other issues associated with it.

Ok, here are the weights as of 10am this morning:

Henry: 6lbs. 5oz.
Brooks: 7lbs. 15oz.
Clark: 6lbs. 7oz.
Isaac: 8lbs. 4oz.

I will try to get back on here and give you an update with a little more regularity, thank you for keeping up with, and praying for, our family!!

We love you all,

Brad, Jen, Henry, Brooks, Clark, and Isaac

Update in the Madness....

Hey everyone,

Sorry that I have not updated the blog in a while, as you can imagine, life is much different in the Murray house these days! Brooks and Isaac are thriving at home, gaining weight, and sleeping really well so far. We are so thankful to have two of our little boys home with us. It has been a long time coming and we are loving taking care of them. Each day has been a little better and we are getting just enough sleep to get by.

Henry and Clark continue to hang out at the hospital for the time being. Henry is doing great, should be home in the next week or two. Henry is taking most of his food by bottle now, but still requires the occasional tube feed, so he will remain in the hospital until he can stay awake for all eight feeds per day.

Clark is still the one that needs your prayers the most. Clark continues to have digestive problems with his intestines. They had to stop his feedings completely in the last few days due to loops in his intestines that were bloated. The doctors had to place a new IV line to give him fluids in the meantime. They have now put him back on minimum feeds, but are doing a series of tests to try to find the root of his problem. Please pray that Clark would make a final recovery and come home to us as soon as possible.

On a lighter note, we were blessed beyond our imaginations yesterday evening when Jen's parents brought gifts from a shower held for us at Calvary Baptist Church in Danville, Illinois. They filled our living room with gifts yesterday evening for our boys. This is just one more example of the amazing provision that God is providing for our family. Jen and I have not been able to keep up with all of you who have blessed us in various ways in the past few weeks since the boys were home. The cards, gifts, food, love, and prayers that have been offered has been amazing. We are so far behind on thank you notes at th