It’s ᴄʀᴀᴢʏ, ɴᴏᴛ ᴏɴᴇ ʙᴜᴛ ғɪᴠᴇ ᴋɪᴅs. This Christmas will be an extra special one for the couple Briana and Jordan Driskell. In May, the Kentucky couple welcomed quintuplets after ғᴀᴄɪɴɢ ɪɴғᴇʀᴛɪʟɪᴛʏ sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟᴇs for years.
Now, they’re celebrating their babies’ first Christmas with an adorable photo shoot.
Briana and Jordan, 26, sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟᴇᴅ for more than two years to ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇɪᴠᴇ. Briana said : “It was the ᴡᴏʀsᴛ emotional rollercoaster I’ve ever been on in my life. We’d start the month out trying to be optimistic, like, ‘This is it! It’s going to happen this time,’ then it would come time to test and, once again, it would be ɴᴇɢᴀᴛɪᴠᴇ. Finally, after their fifth ғᴇʀᴛɪʟɪᴛʏ ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ, the Driskells saw two pink lines. We got a baby for each time we tried! At their eight-week ᴜʟᴛʀᴀsᴏᴜɴᴅ that we were expecting quintuplets. I was in such sʜᴏᴄᴋ, I ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅɴ’ᴛ sᴘᴇᴀᴋ. I just sat there staring at the screen in disbelief. I couldn’t believe there were five sacs. My husband almost ᴘᴀssᴇᴅ ᴏᴜᴛ. Both our moms were in the room and his mom went outside and ᴘᴜᴋᴇᴅ ᴛᴡɪᴄᴇ. My mom just couldn’t stop saying, ‘Five?’ Five?’ It was extremely sʜᴏᴄᴋɪɴɢ.”
Dᴏᴄᴛᴏʀs suggested that the couple do sᴇʟᴇᴄᴛɪᴠᴇ ʀᴇᴅᴜᴄᴛɪᴏɴ, as ᴄʜᴀɴᴄᴇs ᴏғ ᴀʟʟ ғɪᴠᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴀʙɪᴇs sᴜʀᴠɪᴠɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ ᴡᴇʀᴇ sʟɪᴍ. However, the couple refused. She said :” We think Gᴏᴅ has a reason to bring these children to us. Therefore, there is no reason for us to choose to ʟᴇᴀᴠᴇ them. We completely trust Gᴏᴅ’s decision.” The ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ was ᴇxᴛʀᴇᴍᴇʟʏ ʜᴀʀᴅ on Briana. She sᴜғғᴇʀᴇᴅ ᴏᴠᴀʀɪᴀɴ ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟɪᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴs and sᴇᴠᴇʀᴇ ᴍᴏʀɴɪɴɢ sɪᴄᴋɴᴇss. She said :” I ʟᴏsᴛ 10 pounds and was ʜᴏsᴘɪᴛᴀʟɪᴢᴇᴅ ғᴏʀ ᴇxᴛʀᴇᴍᴇ ᴅᴇʜʏᴅʀᴀᴛɪᴏɴ . It was ᴘʀᴇᴛᴛʏ ᴀᴡғᴜʟ. Then at 22 weeks, just when I was starting to feel better. But I received sᴄᴀʀʏ ɴᴇᴡs: My ᴄᴇʀᴠɪx was sʜᴏʀᴛᴇɴɪɴɢ , which can ʟᴇᴀᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴘʀᴇᴛᴇʀᴍ ʟᴀʙᴏʀ. I was ɪᴍᴍᴇᴅɪᴀᴛᴇʟʏ ᴀᴅᴍɪᴛᴛᴇᴅ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴏsᴘɪᴛᴀʟ, where my sᴘᴇɴᴛ the ʀᴇᴍᴀɪɴᴅᴇʀ of my ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ ᴏɴ ʙᴇᴅʀᴇsᴛ. I wanted to ᴋᴇᴇᴘ the babies ɪɴsɪᴅᴇ of me until 30 weeks”.
But ᴅᴜᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇʀɴs ʀᴇʟᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴘʀᴇᴇᴄʟᴀᴍᴘsɪᴀ, ᴀ ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴏᴜs ᴄᴏɴᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴ ᴍᴀʀᴋᴇᴅ ʙʏ ʜɪɢʜ ʙʟᴏᴏᴅ ᴘʀᴇssᴜʀᴇ, the quintuplets were ᴅᴇʟɪᴠᴇʀᴇᴅ at 28 weeks into Briana’s ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ. Zoey Hart, Dakota Faith, Hollyn Grace, Asher Blaze, and Gavin Lane were ᴅᴇʟɪᴠᴇʀᴇᴅ by ᴄᴇsᴀʀᴇᴀɴ sᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ at the Uɴɪᴠᴇʀsɪᴛʏ ᴏғ Kᴇɴᴛᴜᴄᴋʏ’s Cʜᴀɴᴅʟᴇʀ Hᴏsᴘɪᴛᴀʟ. The sᴍᴀʟʟᴇsᴛ was Zoey, who weighed in at 1 pound, 13 ounces, while Hollyn, the ʟᴀʀɢᴇsᴛ , was born at 2 pounds, 6 ounces. Despite her sɪᴢᴇ , Zoey is the ғᴇɪsᴛɪᴇsᴛ baby in the bunch. Nearly two months after they were born, now the 5 kids are back home and reunited with their families. Briana says that life with five babies isn’t easy, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. Husband her Jordan only took a week off work before heading back to the day job working on a crane. But fortunately she has the help of her mother and nanny. Briana said: “It’s absolutely ᴄʀᴀᴢʏ, there is certainly never a dull moment in the house. We are feeding every 30 minutes because as soon as the last baby is fed you are back to feeding the first one. The cycle starts again. It is a bit like an assembly line. They get through numerous bottles a day.
We have a nanny that stays with us. My mum is also here at 6am everyday to help out. We are so thankful for that. We haven’t really taken them out too much as their ɪᴍᴍᴜɴᴇ sʏsᴛᴇᴍs are weak but when we do we certainly attract attention! We usually take them out in twos or threes on different trips. We had to get a van as soon as they were born, obviously our standard car didn’t fit them. But even that’s a squeeze! It is definitely a huge task taking them out and we attract a lot of attention. We can’t really go anywhere without that. Each of them has their own ʟɪᴛᴛʟᴇ ᴘᴇʀsᴏɴᴀʟɪᴛɪᴇs. It has been really cool watching them grow. We do have to stay to quite a tight schedule and we are adapting that as they grow. We are going to have to get a bigger house for sure. Sometimes it does not seem real – this past year has just been a bit of a blur. They each go through around four outfits a day – that means at least three washes. We go through around 60 nappies a day. It’s certainly been a sʜᴏᴄᴋ and a steep learning curve.”
This Christmas will be an extra special one for the couple. They will have a special holiday with 5 children. Briana said :” Over the years, I have gotten Christmas cards from friends and family who had kids and that was ʜᴀʀᴅ for me considering I always wanted to be a mom and was having so many ᴛʀᴏᴜʙʟᴇs ᴛʀʏɪɴɢ. Now, I’m finally a mom and that’s one thing I was looking forward to, finally being able to send out Christmas cards with my own kids on them. We feel happy with what we have, thank Gᴏᴅ.”
