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

(Update) The Incredible Hulk

Update: We've received word that the shots will be delivered to our door between 4-5pm this afternoon. We aren't holding our breath, but it looks like this might just happen! Brad, you deserve a trip to Hawaii for this one! Wish I could send us! =) He has spent HOURS fighting for these shots - shows how much he loves his boys! Thanks for all your prayers and encouragement - this really is a BIG DEAL! -Jen

Hey blog world, this is Brad.

Jen took this picture of me earlier tonight while I was on the phone with insurance trying to get RSV shots....yes, I was angry!

My company, Woolpert, changed insurance at the turn of the year. This started the whole approval process for Synagis all over again. Praise God, we have secured approval for Synagis shots, but are really having trouble actually getting them here. Synagis for this month alone will cost over $10,000 and comes from a specialty pharmacy which must be mail-ordered.

I will not go into all of the details, but any of you who have dealt with large insurance companies know that it takes an act of God Himself to get things to work out in a timely manner!

Our nurse told us today that they are seeing a lot of RSV cases right now, so this is a very bad time for our boys to be late getting these vital shots. (Click here to learn about RSV)

Seriously, could you stop and pray that we would be able to get these shots tomorrow (Tuesday) so as not to make them any later? The specialty pharmacy my insurance uses happens to be in Indianapolis, so we are pushing for a same-day delivery to our doctor tomorrow.

Please pray!

Brad (aka quatro papa)

A Personalized Message from Peyton Manning: Rub Some Dirt On It....or maybe not

Well, just in case we do come down with the "Rotten Stinky Virus" or any other one for that matter Peyton Manning has given us a personalized message of encouragement. Click on the link to see his pep talk.

Click Here to See Peyton's Message

Perhaps "rubbing dirt on it" has caused The RSV? Interesting concept....Thanks, Peyton.

In all seriousness, I wanted to give an RSV shot update, since so many of you have been praying. Your prayers are so appreciated! It really has been a run for our money - literally. I could go on for pages and pages...but here's the Cliff Notes version:

Brad has spent HOURS (no exaggeration) duking it out with insurance, pharmacies, customer service reps, advocacy groups, etc. I know that he has been able to endure this because of his love for his boys and his desire for them to be protected. Due to his perseverance, our boys should be getting their Synagis shots this evening. (Our nurse, Kim, is coming to our house to give the boys their shots so we don't have have to expose our boys to more germs in the office - Talk about going above and beyond!) That's all pending, of course, upon the shots arriving at our doctor's office. We really are to the point that we'll believe it when we see it. We wouldn't be surprised if FedEx goes on strike and refuses to make deliveries. That's just how crazy the last week has been! Regretfully, this may not be the end of the battle as we learned that Brad's work (that has agreed to approve us) will be completely changing to a new insurance company at the beginning of the year, thus we may have to repeat the entire process. Phewwww...We are ready for a vacation!

However, in the midst all of this ciaos, we have to praise God. None of this has been a surprise to Him! Looking back we see His provision when we thought it was impossible to get approved and yet another lesson in trusting Him. He has heard and answered our prayers!

Here are some verses that have been an encouragement to me this week:

Philippians 4: 4-7 "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Matthew 6:25, 34 "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?.... "Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

RSV = Rotten Stinky Virus

Well, I've shed some tears today after being DENIED our Synagis shots for RSV. For those of you unfamiliar with RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) let me do my best to explain.....
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Update: Great news!! After being denied by our secondary insurance, which we were assured was the best route to take for approval, I was informed this morning that our primary health network does not make the final decision on these matters, and it appears we may get these shots covered afterall!! It will still cost us over $2,000 for the year, but this is much better than $38,000. Please keep praying, we are not declaring victory yet, but it appears we may get these covered. Thank you for praying and for all the helpful suggestions, we love you all!!

___________________________________

Like the flu or common cold, RSV is a seasonal virus. It starts NOW and continues into about April. It's common and easily spread infecting nearly all children by the age of 2.

Most kids (born at full-term) develop moderate - severe cold like symptoms, but due to preemies fragile, less developed lungs and lower immune system they are at increased risk for developing severe RSV infection leading to severe lung infection (ie: pneumonia), life-threatening breathing problems, hospitalization, etc.

Let's take a look at the risk factors.....

• Premature birth (35 wks or less) - CHECK


• Heart disease - NOPE


• Lung Issues - Clark had respiratory distress and Isaac was ventalated as well


• Being Around Other Children - It's nearly impossible to find help without kids, but we are trying


• Family History of Asthma - Don't think so...


• Exposure to tobacco smoke - NOPE


• Low Birth weight (less than 5.5 lbs) - CHECK, CHECK, CHECK, CHECK


• Multiple Births - Ah, YEAH

So obviously we meet plenty of risk factors, yet we are being denied because we don't smoke, don't take our kids to daycare, and our kids are "too healthy". I'm thrilled that they are healthy, but we'd like to think that having the Synagis shot has had something to do with that!

Synagis is the only approved medicine to protect from the severity of RSV, which is the #1 cause of hospitalization in babies under one year. However, if we paid for the shots on our own it would cost us $6400 dollars per month for a grand total of over $38,000. Yes, 38 GRAND! This just isn't possible for our income. We are still working the system to see if we can get approved, but it's not looking too promising at this time. If anyone reading has any advise, or info. we gain from similar experiences or connections, please let us know through a comment or email.

What does this mean for us if we don't get approved? More isolation - which has been a blow today, just to be honest. After months of bedrest, hospitalization, then the NICU, then staying home to protect the little guys, and staying away from church, family gatherings, holidays, etc. it's hard to think about being cooped up for the next 6-7 months. I'm more than ready to have a more "normal" life. However, I know that God is sovereign in ALL things and I can bank on that.

Would you join us in praying for a few things?

1. Ultimately, that we would be approved for the Synagis shots
   
2. For wisdom in deciding how much isolation is sufficient
   
3. Contentment in all circumstances and outcomes
   
4. That God would continue to protect our boys and that we would trust Him over and over again with their lives. They are yours, Lord

Sorry that this was not my typical light-hearted post. Just keepin' it real.....I am overwhelmingly grateful for 4 healthy boys and all that God has provided thus far. Blogging helps remind me of this much is true!

Illustations and data taken from www.synagis.com

These Are the Sweetest Days

These truly are some of the sweetest days. The past few days I've really got to see some great interactions between our boys. These pictures weren't posed, I just happened to get Isaac loving his buddy Henry. Monday night, while we were putting the boys down for the night, we were able to witness Isaac and Henry playing peek-a-boo with each other - no kidding! It went on for several minutes along with squealing, screams of joy, and laughter. They have all been watching each other closely and teaming up to play or check something out together. I keep thinking, "Wow, what an incredible opportunity to see our babies getting to interact and discover things together, thanks to the blessing of quadruplets!"

Also, I wanted to thank each of you for the great birthday wishes. It was an overwhelming response! Please know that any good that you see in me is not a reflection of who I am, but Christ in me. There is a lot of ugliness that I need to desperately work on......I also want to thank Brad for the thousanth time. I could not believe he put that all together and got so many of my medical "family" involved. Yes, Brad really is an incredible husband and dad. He amazes me daily with his patience, determination, compassion, perseverance, and just the down right fun he chooses to have with everything! I am exceedingly grateful for God's provision through my husband. He is more amazing than I've ever observed before...You've got my respect, Mr. Murray!

I've never understood the line from Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, " until this year. My 27th year has absolutely been my most memorable year yet, filled with the absolute highest mountain top joys, and some of the lowest most painful moments. Obviously, this year goes beyond us, as we had to bend our knees in submission to our Maker. I am thankful that God has used the storms to strengthen our faith and teach us how to be more like Christ. Please pray that we would continue to grow!

James 1:2-4 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Proverbs 11:2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

Carrying the load....

Hey everyone, time for a dad post:

I thought the above picture best illustrated how I am feeling these days about being a father. It is such a joy to have four healthy boys to parent, but wow, what a responsibility.

God has continued to provide for our family through many different avenues, but now comes the ultimate request: please Lord, give me wisdom.

Up to this point, parenting has really amounted to changing diapers, feeding babies, keeping up with normal house chores, keeping a healthy marriage, and trying to get some sleep. In my opinion, in the first six months, the damage you can do to your child when you make mistakes is pretty minimal. (reasonable mistakes anyway)

But, going forward from here, I am beginning to see understanding on the faces of my children. When I say something sternly to them, it actually brings a reaction from them. (even if it is laughing sometimes, Brooks) When I enthusiastically say "good job!!" to them when they are eating, they smile proudly sometimes. This is really exciting to see, but it is also scary.

This means that from now on, any sinful behavior on my part may ....ok, will have an impact on my children. And, with each passing month, that impact will be deeper and longer lasting. In a few months, if I make an unkind comment about someone in front of my children, it could teach them that it is ok to tear others down. If I am impatient with Jen and harsh with her, it could begin to teach them that this is how you treat your spouse.

I know I will make mistakes, but as I think about these boys, I am seeing more and more things about myself that I want to change to avoid passing them on to them. I SO want my boys to some day be men of integrity, honor, and good character. Church will help with this, friends and family can help with this, but ultimately, it is mine and Jen's responsibility to get these boys headed down a path of correct living. Obviously a huge part of that responsibility is pointing them to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And, I cannot do this successfully without first living out these principles in our home in front of my children.

That being said, it is also an incredible joy to be given this responsibility by our God. For some reason, God gave me four wonderful children, and a great, encouraging wife to go through this journey with. As difficult as the past year has been, I have never been so happy in my life.

Would you pray for Jen and I as we seek to glorify the Lord with how we parent our children? Thank you all for keeping up with us on this journey, it is really fun sharing it with all of you!

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

Scale Tippin' at 7 Months

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I interupt this post to inform you of some eventful news live from the Murray house. Brooks Layton Murray is exhibiting 2 lower teeth! They appear to be central incisors. That brings the Murray Quad Tooth Count to 4! Henry 2, Brooks 2. Stay tuned here to 4tunate as we bring live teeth updates, as they appear. Back to our regular posting....
*************************************************************************************

We had an awesome check-up on Friday. Our boys are growing and thriving - Praise be to God! Here are the updated weights in birth order:

Henry: 16lbs. 3oz. (2 lbs. 12 oz @birth)

Brooks: 15 lbs. 14 0z. (3lbs. @birth)

Clark: 16 lbs. 11oz. (3lbs. 7 oz @birth)

Isaac: 19 lbs. 3 oz!!!!! (4lbs @birth)

29% of you guessed correctly on Isaac's weight. Congratulations, winning voters, you get the joy of changing a dirty diaper of your choice redeemable any day of the week!

Everyone is on the growth charts for weight for actual age. A huge accomplishment, because usually they are still going by the adjusted age for charting (5 months vs. 7). Isaac is in the upper 50-75% for his actual age. Henry is not our "little Henry" anymore -he's passed up Brooks! Our doctor was quite pleased with everyone's progress and isn't referring us to any therapies at this time. It was a very encouraging appointment.

Our first shot at cereal was Saturday. It was pretty much a disaster, but last night showed measurable improvement. We are anxiously awaiting our feeding table to be shipped. A group of our volunteers went together to basically cover the cost for us to purchase one and now after trying to feed them in 4 bouncy seats on the floor, we are even more excited to use it (and so are our achin' backs)! I think it will be a HUGE blessing! Thank you to all of you who went together to make it possible, it was an incredible surprise. We'll post more pictures as our adventure in solid foods continues!

Also, we would continue to ask for your prayers for our family. We know that we are well "out of the woods" by now, but raising four babies is a challenge, especially as we are trying to feed 4 babies at the same time, and as I have less help coming in. We are definitely staying positive and LOVE this adventure, just pray that we would have strength, patience, endurance, and energy to run this race and for wisdom in upcoming decisions. We are soooo grateful for each of their lives and want to raise them to our best possible ability through God's power. Often, we catch ourselves trying to do so much on our own, without depending fully on HIM! This is how you could specifically be praying for us. Thank you so much, friends!

Isaac, Brooks, Henry, and Clark after their first attempt at semi-people food.

Next up, baths for every sticky one of you!

Clark's thoughts: "What's the big deal over eating by spoon? I'm all over it!"

We are SWEATY!!! PLEASE READ!!!!

Hey everyone....we have a prayer request/cry for help. Our air conditioner went out this afternoon. I know, crazy. We have 4 cryin' babies in a house that is getting pretty uncomfortable. We already have had a guy come look at our unit and unfortunately the ENTIRE unit needs replaced for about 2500 buckaroos and it won't be fixable until next week. The forecast is 90s all week long (see attachment below). We have our 6 month appointment on Friday, so I'm thinking sweaty kids getting shots is just not a fun picture. We are only telling you all this because we know we have a great audience with possible temporary solutions or at least a little relief for us. I'm not sure what to ask, but if you know any one with an extra window unit, someone out of town that needs a house sitter, fans, squirt guns, you fill in the blank. Me as a mom, I'm fighting a bit of panic, but I know that God is in control of this very situation. Thanks for your prayers and maybe sympathy. Just another bump in the road. We can do this!!!!!

Quads Being Born As I Blog...

UPDATE: They are here! Please keep a prayin'! I haven't heard from the Suz herself yet, but she has a huge recovery ahead of her and challenges ahead in the NICU. Thankful that she made it to a whopping 30+ weeks! She's sacrificed so much for these pumpkins - what a mom!

I think Brad and I would be headed to Texas right now if we had a private jet! Just what she needs a bunch of company and more babies!

Some specifics that you could pray for:

• Recovery for Suzanne - for bleeding to stop and her body to adjust to all the destressing of taking 4 babies out
• Lungs - these babies are gonna have to figure out this new breathing thing and it's a lot of work
• That Ethan, Ben, Andrew, and Savannah would THRIVE regardless of what typical "30 weekers" are expected to do - that they would FLOOR the medical community!
• Strength for Joe and Suz as they face uncertainties and a entire new adventure
• NICU staff- wisdom and the BEST care possible for these tiny ones
• That God would be glorified and others would come to a relationship with Christ through their journey

Happy Birthday Steece Babies!

Andrew (born 1st at 3:47pm): 2 lbs, 8.6 ounces

Savannah (2nd at 3:48pm): 2 pounds, 14.8 ounces

Ethan (3rd 3:49pm): 2 pounds, 7 ounces

Benjamin (4th at 3:50pm): 3 pounds, 4 ounces

(My reaction moments ago....)

For those of you following my fellow quad buddy Suzanne, she is having a c-section as I blog due to premature labor. Alright,you amazing prayer warriors, get on ya'lls knees for this Texas mama! She is 30 wks 1 day. Please pray for Suzanne, Joe, and the little ones: Savannah, Ben, Andrew, and Ethan. I know many of you are "hooked" to her blog as well!
P.S. OUR little babies turn 6 months tomorrow! UNREAL!

Five Months as a Dad.....Fun Fun Fun!

Hello all, long time-no blog!

My beautiful wife Jenny has been taking care of the blog now that she has the easy life of staying home with the crew. I mean, what else does she have to do other than feed five babies (myself included) keep the house clean, doing laundry constantly, making 20 bottles per day, washing 20 bottles per day, and keeping the boys entertained. Ok, so she is a busy chic, but very happy and cheerful most of the time. This is why I was so desparate to see her as a mommy, she is doing an awesome job!

It has been a while since I have been on, so I wanted to give my perspective on what the first 5 months have been like. There are definetly two sides to taking care of four babies as a dad. On one side, I have never been so busy in my life. From the moment I walk in the door at night, it seems that there is very little down time. This is not all bad, we all tend to be a little lazy, but when four little boys keep you hoppin, you quickly realize how much happier you are when you moving.

On the other side, these four boys are truely a blessing from heaven. I have never been so filled with joy in my life. I can sit on the floor and play with these guys for hours and never get tired of it. The first five months are, and continue to be, magical times. I am learning that babies change and develop at an amazing rate, and you can see these changes daily. Little by little, I am getting to know my boys and it is so exciting. Everytime something gets more difficult, it has always came with a blessing right beside it. So, yes, it is going to be crazy when these little guys get mobile, but I am really looking forward to it. The bible teaches us that children are a blessing from the Lord, and I am getting to experience this first hand.

Thank you to all of you who have continued to follow our family via the blog. Especially to those of you who prayed for Jen and the boys all the way through the pregnancy. God has backed a dump truck up to our lives, and dumped blessings on our family.

Brooks Layton is scheduled for surgery on July 13th for hernia repair. We go to the hospital this week for an ultrasound to make sure the hernia still needs fixed. We have seen a visible change in it, and are hopeful that it has healed itself. Our doctors assure us that this is very unlikely, but they have agreed to check to make sure. Jen and I dont ever take these things for granted anymore. Many doctors told us that especially Brooks and Clark, were very unlikely to survive the pregnancy due to being monoamniotic twins, plus being a part of a set of quads. So, we trust that our Lord can and does do amazing things. Would you pray with us that Brooks would no longer need surgery? Our God is great and gracious either way, but He just might grant yet another request from us!

We love you all!

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

Steece Update

Thanks to those of you praying for our quad buddies Suzanne and Joe Steece. Suzanne was admitted yesterday to the hospital due to gestational diabetes and signs of preeclampsia. Most of you remember this is what caused me to deliver the boys, so please be praying for the Steece family and their precious ones: Ben, Andrew, Savannah, and Ethan. Suzanne is coming up on 25 weeks! Keep cheering her on - I know she appreciates the prayers more than anything! You can do it Suz!

Prayer Request.....Please pray...

Friends and Family:

I have a new prayer request for you from a new acquaintance of ours from Texas. Her name is Suzanne and she is pregnant with quadruplets. Suzanne contacted us shortly after the boys were born to ask a few questions after she found our blog. Jen and I have been following her blog ever since.

Ok, so here goes:

I know that it is much easier to pray for someone you know personally. But, I have told Suzanne that I am going to try to get as many of our bloggers signed up to pray for her babies as I can. Suzanne just found out that her cervix is shortening, so they have put her on bedrest. They are also considering placing a cerclage in an effort to lengthen her pregnancy. As those of you who followed our blog know, she HAS to get to at least 24 weeks for her babies to have any chance at survival. Would you all PLEASE pray for her babies? Would you also go to her site linked below and leave a comment to let her know that you are praying for her? You all gave us so much encouragement during Jens pregnancy, would you now pass that along to Suzanne? These are four precious little lives, and our God CAN bring them into this world safely, please pray!!

http://thelifeofsuz.blogspot.com/
(By the way, Suzanne is having three boys and a girl)

Thank you all!

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

Our Little Henry is Coming Home!!!!

Friends and Family:

Awesome news to share with you, Henry is coming home!! They told us last night that Henry was ready to join us in Pittsboro today! We are so excited to get this much closer to having our family all together. God has been so incredible in supplying our every need the past few weeks as we learn to care for babies for the first time. We are ready and waiting for our little Henry to come home to us tonight.

Could you pray that the transition would go smoothly for him and for us? We are handling two babies pretty well now, so we are hoping that Henry will now fit right into the schedule. Please also pray that Clark would join us soon also. Clark continues to have digestive issues, but will hopefully come home in the next week or two if those clear up as they expect them to. The doctors recently took him off of his feedings for a few days to give his intestines a rest. They have now resumed a full feeding schedule for him and hope that his body will begin to function correctly after this rest. I guess I think of it like your computer locking up. You have to shut it down and let it cool off, then restart and hope for the best. Hopefully Clark just needed a restart!

Thank you all for your prayers, support, and help with physical needs.

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

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

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 this point, that I am absolutely certain that we are going to miss some people in thanking them for their generosity. We do want to thank each of you individually, but for those of you that we miss, thank you very much. We are more thankful than we will ever be able to express to each of you.

-To our parents, siblings, great grandparents, and extended family: Thank you for your never ending support and help.

-The Bible Church of Brownsburg: You are the reason that we know that we will be okay. Your continued support and prayer is priceless. It is exciting to have such a great body of believers to support our boys growth.

-Teachers at Brown Elementary, thank you so much for the money you raised, we could not believe how generous all of you were, thank you!

-Brownsburg Teachers in general, you are an amazing group, thank you for your support.

-Calvary Baptist Church: I have never seen such a faithful group of prayer warriors.

There are so many of you to thank that I could not possible list you all. To all of you who have been so helpful and generous, thank you from the bottom of our hearts, we love you all!

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

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

Brooks and Isaac are HOME!!!

Hey all,

Not much time, but I wanted to post a quick message to tell you all that Isaac and Brooks made it home last night at about 8pm. Jen and I decided we wanted to spend our first night home with the boys alone, but after one very fun and exciting night, Jen's mom is coming up this afternoon to give us a hand.

It is an amazing joy to have two of our boys home so quickly, we are praising God for this amazing day in our lives.

Please pray for Henry and Clark. They are doing well so far, but need to begin gaining weight and eating better. They are really having trouble getting them to gain, so we ask you to join us in going to the Great Physician to allow them to begin to grow as needed.

Thank you all, here is our first complete family picture since the boys were born, then one of Brooks and Isaac when they got home.

First Family Photo!



Brooks (left) and Isaac (right)

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

Coming Home????

Hey all,

So sorry that I have not been on to update in a while.

Awesome news flash: We may have two of our boys home within the next two days!! Isaac and Brooks are doing so well, that they are going to come home more than a month before their due date, praise God!!! This is only a guess, but it looks like Clark and Henry will be home within a week or two of their brothers.

God continues to do amazing work in the lives of our little boys. Please pray that they come home soon, and pray that God would give Jen and I the strength and wisdom to care for our little boys. Also, praise God, Jen's fever broke and as of this morning, she has gone more than 36 hours without a fever! Looks like God may have healed her up just in time. She is still very weak from 12 weeks of bed rest, so please pray that God completely heals her and gives her some renewed strength.

Due to the short notice of their homecoming, we are going to have to get our help lined up. Cindy H., if you read this, give me a call sometime on the cell phone if you still have that number, Kirb and Sally have it if you do not.

We are so excited. Thank you all for praying!

Brad, Jen, and the miraculous quads!

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

Could We Ask for Your Prayers....Again???

Hey everyone! It's Friday - celebrate! It's Jen writing...Brad took off today from work and is making yet another Walgreens run. We totally should have bought some stock in them. I unfortunately am fighting yet another infection (most likely my uterus) with fever and the whole bit. It's hard to not be discouraged after feeling so well the last 2 weeks. Again it's keeping me from the boys much more than I like and just wearing on Brad and I both. I'm on 2 antibiotics and will be getting an ultrasound next week to see what's going on, but in the mean time we were shocked with the mention of the possibility of 2 of the boys coming home early to mid of this coming week. (They also may show a stubborn spell and take their time for a few more weeks.) We cannot wait to bring them home and have them with us all the time, but needless to say, it was a little bit surprising. We knew the boys were doing well for 32 weekers, but didn't realize they were doing this outstanding! The Lord our God is awesome! Would you please pray that I could make more of a recovery before the boys are sent home? We are asking for strength and wisdom as we face a new phase of this awesome adventure. Also, that we would be able to get some things ready and make some serious Target/Babies R Us runs before the hand-off? We continue to be amazed, blessed, and elated by your outpouring of support and generosity. There is no adequate way of thanking each of you here on earth.

Also, I'd like to say a Happy late Bday to my sweet man. (Feb. 21st) I know that his celebration kinda got lost in the craziness of me being sick and the boys. It would take me days to try and describe his goodness to me. What an example he has been of "how to love your wife as Christ loves the church"! He truly has completely given up himself to care for the boys and I. It's so exciting to see him already as an amazing father. These boys are blessed through God's grace.

In addition it's my parent's 50th anniversary today. WOW!!!! They have truly shown us their love for us through this journey and we are so thankful for their life example. Congratulations Ed and Janet! I'm sorry that we can't be there to throw a big bash for you today. We have the whole year to celebrate, right?

Again, thank you for your prayers and continued care for our big family.

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

Another Praise...

Friends and Family,

I wanted to give you all a quick update. Once again, it seems as though God has chosen to answer our prayers with a "YES". Clark's last x-ray showed a significant improvement in his intestines and they were finally able to get things moving with him last night also! It looks as though he will begin to be given milk again today. They will be starting him very slowly and watching him as his digestive tract starts back up again. Please pray that his body would be able to handle the food better this time.

Thank you all, to God be the glory!

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