My Son Clark

The picture above illustrates what I thought the first time I saw David Cook of American Idol on my TV screen. As soon as I saw this guy's hair, I thought, "what a mess", then I thought, "hey, he looks like Clark!" What do you think? This was the best messed up hair picture of Clark we had, but I am telling you, they bear a strange resemblance when Clark first wakes up in the morning. Time for a haircut Clark!

Clark made an especially miraculous entry into our world almost 16 months ago. I can vividly remember watching for him to be delivered. Henry and Brooks had already been born, and Clark was right on his heals. Since Brooks and Clark shared an amniotic and chorionic sack, they were almost born together. We were worried about Brooks and Clark the entire pregnancy due to the fact that they were a rare form of identical twins known medically as monoamniotic twins. (Click here for a detailed explaination of monoamniotic twins)

Due to this complication, I was very anxious to see just how tangled Brooks' and Clark's cords would be. Miraculously, after 8 months of development without anything separating them from becoming entangled, Brooks and Clark were delivered with their cords only slightly twisted around one another. God was so gracious to us and them!

Unfortunately, we were not out of the woods yet. Clark would almost immediately be placed on a ventilator due to immature lungs where he would struggle for days. Clark's blood gas levels became dangerously saturated with CO2. It made no sense to me, but his lungs were doing fine with oxygenating his blood, but were failing to remove the CO2 properly, creating a potentially deadly situation. The doctors and nurses at St. Vincent were doing all they could to get our little boy to breath properly, and get him out of danger. They were forced to switch him to a jet ventilator, but were still unable to stabilize his blood gas levels.

Since Jen was still hospitalized with high fever and blood loss after delivery, we were getting updates around the clock from the NICU. Jen was not able to go visit the boys yet because of her fever, but all of that changed around 12am that night. Our NP came in and informed us that she had cleared it with the NICU doctors to have Jen come up and see the boys. We didn't realize it at the moment, but they wanted to make sure that Clark's mommy got to see him alive, as they were beginning to wonder if he would make it through the night.

When we returned to Jens room that night we sent out an urgent prayer request to our church, and to our blog readers. We then went to prayer on his behalf. Our gracious God once again answered our prayers, sparing Clark's life. Within an hour of Jen visiting the NICU, Clark's CO2 levels finally began to drop. The moment our NP burst through the door with the news and a smile on her face still brings tears to my eyes when I think of it. My little Clark was going to be OK.

Clark had a few other scary bumps in the road before exiting the NICU 5 weeks later, but is now a very happy, healthy little boy. You never want to see your children suffer, but suffering brings an appreciation for how much you love them. I will always treasure Clark's life because of those early trials.

Today, Clark's personality is a wonderful daily reminder of God's goodness. He and Henry seem to spar over who is going to command the most attention. I never thought I would use this word to describe my son, as I want them to be masculine men, but since the day he was born, Clark has always been a beautiful little boy. His smile always makes me laugh, and he loves to sit on his daddy's lap, which makes me swell with pride.

Once again, I wish I could describe to all of you what Clark's precious life means to me, it cannot be put to words. But, I love his crooked little smile, I love his deep brown eyes, I love the way he curls up in bed with Brooks each night, I love how he giggles out of control when I rub my nose in his neck, I love to watch him jump in his crib, I love his aggressive personality, I love his expression when I blow air in his face, I love to watch him play, and I love the fact that God let me keep my precious little boy, that I get to watch him grow instead of visiting his grave, and that I get to teach him to fish instead of dreaming about what it would be like to raise all four of my boys, and mostly, I love that I get to give glory to God for saving my little boy when doctors and nurses had tried everything to save him.

I love you Clark, and I am so thankful that I get to be your daddy.

Related Posts:

My Son Henry

My Son Isaac

The Anatomy of a Miracle....

[Yet Another Disclaimer: Due to some medical vocabulary used in this post, I'm giving it a PG-13 rating. I want to give you a heads up this because I know many of you read this with your families.]

I was recently involved in a serious phone conversation with a sweet mommy-to-be, who I met briefly through my perinatologist, Dr. Sumners. She was 13 weeks pregnant with triplets and considering a TAC (Transabdominal Cerclauge) Surgery to prevent cervical incompetence and preterm labor. Her decision had to be made by the following day, due to the risks involved and the rapid growth of the uterus entering the 2nd trimester.

Having this discussion brought back many memories of sleepless nights, praying over this decision in our pregnancy. Unlike a transvaginal cerclauge, the TAC involves a incision similar, if not wider to a c-section, and believe it or not the uterus is removed during a portion of the surgery, so that a band can be tied around the base of the cervix! Isn't medical technology fascinating? To think that little Brooks, Clark, Isaac, and Henry were outside of my body at 13 weeks and then placed back inside of me for another almost 20 weeks is nothing less than incredible! It was one of the toughest decisions of our lives, but for us it came down to if we didn't would we look back with regret of "I could have done more" if we lost the boys before viability. God truly gave us a "peace that passes understanding" as we went from that week onward.

Is it because of the TAC that I was able to carry quadruplets to 32 weeks (the average gestation of quadruplets is 29 weeks)? We'll never know. God gets the glory for their lives and I know that He has placed doctors, technology, medicine, etc. in our path as part of His amazing plan, for which I am increasingly grateful. Every prayer was answered according to His sovereignty.

I'd like to close this post with a recording of Dr. Gentry explaining to our church congregation the seriousness of our mono-mono quadruplet pregnancy just days after my surgery. He explains it with such grace and accuracy. I encourage you to listen as it explains in great clarity questions that I often face concerning infertility, mono-monos, the TAC, and the risks of a quadruplet pregnancy. If you only listen to one portion fast forward to his prayer at the end - I think you'll be amazed at how God answered our prayers specifically.

(The following illustrations should visually complement the audio.)

Two Outer Sacs, Two Inner Sacs
(Typical Fraternal Twins; Isaac and Henry)

One Outer Sac, Two Inner Sacs
(Typical Identical Twins)

One Outer Sac, One Inner Sac
(Our Rare Mono-Mono Twins; Brooks and Clark)

(We're the only known set of quadruplets with a surviving set of mono-mono twins!)

31 Weeks = Crunch Time!

Friends and Family:

We come to you today only with a prayer request. .

Dr. Sumners says that these groups of multiples typically have larger and smaller babies. The smaller babies almost always do better at birth than the larger ones. They are not certain why this is, but it is almost always the case. There is a theory that the smaller ones have had to fight for resources for so long that they are just better fighters.

The Plan:
So, here is the plan. One week from now, Dr. Sumners will perform an amniocentesis on the two larger babies, baby A and baby B. This test will be done to determine lung maturity. He says that if babies A and B have mature lungs, then babies C and D (our identicals) are almost sure to be okay. If this is the case, he says it will be time for birth!!

If babies A and B have lungs that are too immature for safe birth, we will be forced to wait another week, and try it again.

First, praise God that we even have to go through this process! We would have never dreamed that we would need to make a decision about when to do the c-section based on these variables. It was assumed from the beginning that we would just go as far as Jen’s body would allow, then deal with extremely premature babies and pray for the best. At this point, our babies will still be preemie’s, but not the extreme preemies that we were prepared for. Praise God!! Praise God that He has provided doctors with such experience and training to help us through this process!

So, here is our MAJOR prayer request this week:

Please pray that the amniocentesis comes back positive next week. The sooner our babies are ready for birth, the sooner we can get them out of danger of a cord accident. God is in control, and I will trust His timing, but would you pray with us that His timing would be this coming week? If their lungs are mature enough to avoid respirators, there is no reason to leave them inside where they could hurt each other.

Thank you everyone, please pray hard for maturity!!

(Post Copied from www.triplet-update.blogspot.com)

29 Amazing Weeks....

Friends and Family:

We wanted to let you know that our 29 week appointment went very well! The boys got measured today and we were pleasantly surprised to find that all four of our babies have cleared two pounds. We are so excited about this. The only issue that presented itself that we would ask that you bath in prayer has to do with our two identical boys, C and D. (Yes, they do have names, be we aren't telling....) Dr. Sumners assures us that it is not a problem to be alarmed about, but it is one that he wants to keep an eye on.

Babies C and D are smaller in general, but this is to be expected because they share a placenta which often does not allow quite as much nutrients to reach them. What is not expected is the fact that their abdominal measurement was a little smaller than expected for their size. Dr. Sumners says that when their tummy's measurement is small, it can sometimes be an indicator that their growth is beginning to be restricted.

So What Now?
First, Dr. Sumners ordered that Jen get a round of steroids to bolster the boys lung development. This will prepare them for arrival in case the problem persists and Dr. Sumners decides to schedule a c-section next week. Next, he ordered a test known as a biophysical profile. This test is done with an ultrasound machine and simply watches for things such as movement, amniotic fluid levels, and breathing movements. The best possible score for this test is an 8, and each of our four boys scored 8 out of 8! Praise God, what a relief! This gave us the confidence that we should easily be able to wait the recommended 48 hours after steroids so that their lungs get that extra boost. Monday we should have another biophysical profile to help Dr. Sumners determine their continued well being.

Size?
Baby A: 2lbs. - 6oz. (Small forward)
Baby B: 3lbs. - 4oz. (Power forward)
Baby C: 2lbs. - 2oz. (Guard)
Baby D: 2lbs. - 2oz. (Point Guard)

(I think we need to adopt a fifth child whose parents were very tall. Neither Jen, nor I are probably going to produce a Center.)

Please continue to pray for the health and lives of our little baby boys. Also, pray that God would give our doctors wisdom as they seek to do the right thing for our babies. We are still praying for 32 weeks in spite of this new development. But, if the boys are born in the next week or two, please pray that they would thrive after birth.

We are almost their friends, thank you so much for all the encouragement and support through this blog, phone calls, and cards. We will never be able to repay you for the kindness you have displayed. We still plan to post a list of anticipated needs soon so that you can begin telling us what you might be willing to do. Please never feel obligated as we realize everyone has their own responsibilities, but we will post the needs in case any of you would like to help us further when the babies finally get to come home to us.

We had one anonymous post this week asking us to give them a list of things we need. Whoever you are, could you please specify which kind of needs you were inquiring about? We would be happy to tell you, but were not sure what kind of needs you were referring to. (current hospital needs, material needs, helping hands, baby stuff??)

(Post Copied from www.triplet-update.blogspot.com)

Hospital Visiting/Card Writing....

Family and Friends,

We are having another great day today. I am at work, but was just able to run over to the hospital at lunch for a monitoring session. All of our babies are doing great and are showing all the right signs to the nurses to let them know that they are all doing well so far. Hopefully this shows that there are no current problems with cord compression or knotting to worry about, but we will keep watching!

Fun stuff:
We did have a couple of fun milestones that we reached this week that are very encouraging. First, when the initial sonogram was done when we checked into the hospital, the doctor doing the scan noticed that she was able to detect breathing movements in our boys. At about 28 weeks, babies are suppose to begin this movement to “practice breathing” before they are born. They still get all of their oxygen supply from Jen, but this will help to develop the muscles necessary to begin to breath when they are born. The other thing that happened for the first time this weekend is the famed fetal hiccups. Jen has now felt hiccups in two of the boys. I think it will be really funny sometime if they are all doing this at once!

Last, we have had some people ask about visiting while Jen is in the hospital. She would love to have visitors while she is there and we welcome all of you. The only thing we ask, for your own convenience, is that you call before you come. This way you will not drive all the way to the hospital only to find that Jen is being monitored and cannot have visitors. If you would like the address for the hospital along with Jen’s room number, feel free to e-mail me and I will get that info to you. (mailto:bradley.g.murray@gmail.com)

Thanks for your prayers, God continues to preserve the life of our precious boys!

Brad, Jen, and the hiccupers….is that a word?? :)

(Post Copied from www.triplet-update.blogspot.com)

Hospitalization going "okay"....

Family and Friends,

We wanted to let you all know that Jen's hospital stay has gone okay so far. Jen has been able to stay in her own clothes, avoid IV's, and get out of the room several times per day. That has been a big help in keeping her sanity, so we praise God for that.

But, the whole reason that we decided to voluntarily have her admitted was to monitor the boys, specifically our trouble makers, babies C and D, not because Jen was having any problems. The process of monitoring these two boys has proven to be an even more difficult task than we anticipated. We do know, due to a sonogram this afternoon that our boys are all doing okay so far, so that is awesome. But, because there is such a crowd in there, it is difficult to distinguish one baby from another.

Please pray that the Lord would give our doctors and nurses wisdom as they seek to determine the best way to monitor our boys for problems. And, as they work through this difficult problem, pray that God would give Jen and I peace, patience, and wisdom as we continue to leave their little lives in the palm of our Heavenly Father's hands.

Thank you again for all of your love and encouragement in the comments. They mean more than any of you know! (Even those of you we don't know personally, thank you for your prayers!!)

Brad, Jen, and the kickers

(Post Copied from www.triplet-update.blogspot.com)

Operation: Hospitalization (28 weeks) and An Explanation of Mono-Amniotic Twins

Friends and family,

Please read this very long post to fully understand what our babies are up against in the coming weeks. It is long, but it is just a complicated situation and difficult to explain.

We have made the decision, in conjunction with our doctors, to have Jen admitted to the hospital one week from today. While this is difficult news to deal with, we believe it is the best thing for our baby boys. And, we never thought we would have to make this decision because our doctors thought that preterm labor or some other complication would have forced Jen into the hospital by now anyway.

Why get admitted?
Sorry, but this is kind of a difficult situation to explain, but I will try:

Quad pregnancies are high risk pregnancies for many obvious reasons. But, we are not dealing with just a “normal” quad pregnancy. As many of you know, at least two of our boys are identical twins. We know this because they share the same outer (chorionic) sac. This is not uncommon for identical twins.

Most identical twins who share an outer sac, however, have their own inner (amniotic) sac which keeps them separate from each other. Our identical twin boys do not have two inner sacs, they share just one sac. This situation is a very rare condition known as monoamniotic (mono-mono) twinning. Identical twins are somewhat rare to start with, but only 1 in 100 sets of identical twins are mono-mono.

The problem with mono-mono twins is that because there is nothing in there separating the two of them. They almost always get their cords all twisted and tangled up. And, unfortunately, about 25-30% of monoamniotic twins do not survive until birth because of this cord entanglement. This is why this pregnancy has been so difficult on Jen and I emotionally. We have been told since the very beginning that there is a chance, at any time during this pregnancy, that one of those cords will get pulled tight and either cut off blood supply to the babies, or even get a cord wrapped around one of the babies’ necks causing their death. And, in most cases, if one of these mono boys dies, the other will most likely die shortly after that.

The silver lining in all of this is that although the mono-mono twins are in grave danger with everyday that passes, the other two “innocent bystanders” that are in their own sacs are probably going to be okay if the mono-mono boys die. As difficult as it is to think about, if one or both of our mono boys die before 28 weeks, we would have to simply give them to the Lord and let them go. It would not be right to deliver all four babies at less than 27 weeks gestation in order to try to save the two mono-mono boys. The risk of birth at this extreme prematurity would put all four of them in mortal danger that we are simply not willing to take.

The good news:
The good news is that we have nearly made it past that early stage of extreme prematurity with all four boys surviving. At 28 weeks, Jen and I have made the very difficult decision that we would be willing to deliver all four babies in an attempt to save the mono-mono boys. So, if the mono-mono boys are still alive one week from today, Jen will be admitted to St. Vincent Women’s hospital for the remainder of the pregnancy. During this time, our babies will be monitored for approximately one hour, three times per day.

The hope is that our doctors will be able to detect a problem with cord entanglement before it becomes a fatal problem. They have made it very clear to us that although they will do everything they can, these cord accidents can be sudden, so there are no guarantees. We may do all of this only to loose them anyway. But, even if there is only a slight chance that we could save them by voluntarily being admitted to the hospital, we are willing to do so.

The prospect of going to the hospital for up to one month is not one that either one of us is looking forward to. If our boys are still doing well at 32 weeks, (Feb. 2nd) our doctor will probably schedule a c-section near this time. By then, the boys should be developed enough that they would be nearly out grave danger. This would be considered the best-case-scenario. There would be no longer be a good reason to leave these mono-mono twins in there at the risk of a cord accident.

Jen has a lot of discomfort ahead of her; this much we are sure of. I understand that we are young and have not experienced much adversity in our lives, but I can tell you that this is the most difficult thing either one of us has ever had to experience. God has given grace in abundance and has spared us from the 24/7 agony of waiting to see if our children survive, but it has been, and continues to be a daily struggle.

Would you please pray with us that God would fill Jen and I with the Holy Spirit and comfort as we await God’s timing for the birth of our children? It is so difficult to avoid worrying constantly about our boys. God will decide if He chooses for them to survive. We know that He is in ultimate control of every detail of this situation.

May God be glorified as we pass through this trial that He sovereignly placed in our path! He is sufficient for our every need!

Thank you for caring for us friends,

Brad and Jen Murray

Two outer sacs, two inner sacs
(Typical Fraternal Twins)

One outer sac, two inner sacs
(Typical Identical twins)

One outer sac, One inner sac
(Our rare mono-mono twins)

(Post copied from www.triplet-update.blogspot.com)

27 Weeks Tomorrow + 4th Wedding Anniversary Today

Friends and Family:

Our doctors office is closed tomorrow due to the upcoming new years holiday, so we had our weekly appointment today instead of our normal Friday time slot.

God has preserved the lives of all four of our baby boys yet another week! They were all doing very well this morning. Our doctor was very impressed with how well Jen’s body is coping with the growth due to the babies. Jen is now measuring what a mom who was pregnant with one baby would measure at 39 weeks gestation. That puts her growth an amazing 12 weeks ahead of a normal pregnancy. But, obviously you expect this with quadruplets. According to our doctor, what you do not expect is for Jen to still be home and dealing with virtually no complications.

God is doing amazing things in this pregnancy. Regardless of the outcome, God has sustained us and allowed for a very smooth pregnancy. We do not get the privilege of knowing the outcome ahead of time as He does, but we place them in His hands to do with as He pleases.


Also, Jen and I are celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary today! 2006 has turned out to be the year of the number 4. I have posted a picture below that was taken on our honeymoon in Key Largo. I could not have imagined the journey that the last four years would be, but I could not have chosen a better partner for it. I love my wife more than I could have imagined possible four years ago sitting on that dock in the Keys. She is the most beautiful, giving, hard working, loving, forgiving, awesome wife that a guy could ever have. I cannot wait to see what a great mother she is going to be to my children. I love you baby!


-Please pray with us that God would allow Jen to carry these babies safely past the 28 week mark. (Jan 5th)

-Please pray that God would give Jen peace and comfort as she awaits His timing for this delivery.

-Please pray that our two identical twins, who are at much more risk medically, would remain safe and healthy.
(Post Copied from www.triplet-update.blogspot.com)

Showers of Blessings....

Believe it or not, this is JEN typing. Brad has been doing such an incredible job updating all of you, that I hated to ruin it, but I just wanted to fill you in on my perspective.....

So many things are going on these days....as I type Brad is on his way home with a 1998 Chevy Venture - Praise the Lord. It really just came together in a matter of days after spending some time praying about it. It's in great condition and we feel we got an incredible price through a friend of a friend. I'll let Brad fill you in on more of the details, but we are very excited about it.

The shower was so wonderful. It was so comforting and encouraging to be around family that loves us and has been so generous towards us. See the pics for more. We really have a great start for things we will need if this house gets filled with baby boys. We are overwhelmed with gratitude.

Many of you have been asking how I am doing physically. The surgery recovery is behind us now, and now to the joys of a fast growing, unnatural pregnancy. I've had some real growing pains, but overall, I really cannot grumble. I have been monitoring contractions nightly for an hour and so far there is nothing to report (as far as I know anyway, I've never had a contraction before, so I'm not really sure what to expect - but people assure me that I'll know it when I feel it). I have been so grateful for the freedom I've had to run an errand here and there, go to church, go to the NICU/Multiples class, and occasionally go out to eat. Will you continue to pray that I stay contraction free? Not only for my sanity, but especially for the safety of our sweet boys. They are quite active these days and seem to really enjoy my ribs. They are especially active during Colts games, perhaps due to my increased heart rate. During our last sonogram, we were able to witness our mono twins (the 2 in the same sack) picking on each other. Brother C had his foot in Brother D's face, kicking him. The sibling wars have begun already!

God continues to prove Himself faithful. He is so worthy of our trust. By His grace, Brad and I are really growing in our relationship with each other and with the Lord. Thank you for your prayers on that matter as well.

My thoughts, "Diapers....uh how do you order these by the truckload?"

A very cheesy shower pic - and it wasn't even posed!

Brad's mom on the right and my mom on the left - these ladies are gems.

My mom and I having a "shower" moment

Some "products" of Lowell and Ethel Minnick (my mom's parents)