Toni Hopper
Lance Morrisett added a new skill to his bag of fatherhood tricks, when his wife, Jennifer, delivered quadruplets March 1 in a hospital far from their home base.
The delivery was planned, since the couple had relocated temporarily in November from Haven, Kan., to Phoenix, Ariz., so Dr. John Elliott, a perinatologist, could oversee the care and delivery of their expected newborn package.
As of Thursday, the family was still waiting to bring one of the babies home. Meanwhile, Morrisett has learned how to hold and feed two of the infants at a time, while Jennifer deals with a third and their first son, Cullen, 5, assists.
“He will help in a lot of ways but he will not change the diapers,” Lance said. “And when Kaden comes home, Jennifer is going to have to learn how to handle two at a time. The trickiest problem is feeding two babies at once.”
Lance is ecstatic about the instant growth of his family of three to seven. In fact, it happened all within four minutes when the contractions were started.
“She spent no time in the hospital and was never in strict bedrest, only self-induced. Dr. Elliott told her to listen to her body,” Morrisett said.
The Morrisetts learned of the quadruplet pregnancy in August 2009 and began making contact with other parents who had gone through the same thing. The one thing they were most concerned about was the duration of the pregnancy.
“It’s just amazing. We’ve been truly blessed, from the very first when we found out, there was the fear, you know, of just bringing one in and then to learn you’re bringing four in, and in talking with quad parents, there’s the fear of bringing them in early,” he said.
The national average to carry quadruplets is 29 1/2 weeks, he said, but his wife managed to carry the babies to week 34.
“Jennifer was amazed at how she was able to keep the babies inside her as long as she did. Especially due to the fact that she was never on strict bed rest and never had to take any medications to stop contractions,” Morrisett said.
“We brought Emma home Saturday (March 6), at five days old, then Lane at seven days old and then Bennett,” Lance said.
Kaden remained in the hospital because of breathing issues and his oxygen levels, but before this week was out, he was off the machine and learning how to suck, swallow and breathe at the same time, his father said.
“It was something to have a 4-pound girl and three 5-pound boys at 34 weeks,” he said. Preparing for them meant a change in their lifestyle during the pregnancy, with Jennifer having to eat upwards of 5,000 calories a day.
“She gained 99.4 pounds and had to drink lots of fluids. She had to watch that she didn’t get up and do too much. Through power of prayer, with people praying for us in Duncan and around the world, now we have four healthy babies,” he said. Jennifer lost 40 pounds within four days of delivery.
Morrisett said having a top doctor made things go much smoother.
The family now holds the Arizona state record holders for having a combined weight of 20 pounds and 7 ounces at time of birth.
“We’re Dr. John Elliott’s 99th set of quads,” he said. After the delivery, the hospital went into action and set up a news conference that was covered by major stations in Arizona.
Since then, Morrisett said plenty of papers throughout the country, and news stations have shared their story.
“It was just amazing to see Jennifer’s reaction. It’s been an amazing adventure, journey and God has blessed us with all the people in our lives.”
Lance said he doesn’t worry about Kaden being in the hospital because the staff at Banner Good Samaritan is excellent.
The babies brought home also had their first outing on Tuesday to the doctor for a scheduled appointment.
He said that through the entire pregnancy, the support received from friends, including those in Duncan, has helped greatly.
Lance is a minister of the Church of Christ in Haven, and said they are anxious about returning but don’t have a leaving date set since little Kaden is still in the hospital. They plan to fly back home. Meanwhile, it’s become a new process in learning how to juggle everything at home, even if it’s temporary.
“Everyone advised us to get them on the same feeding schedule, otherwise we’d be feeding all day long. They eat about every three to four hours,” he said.
And they’ve already discovered that each child has begun developing their own personalities.
“There’s some differences, though we haven’t quite seen all the differences. At this point, we still have a band on one of the boys and we are not dressing the boys not alike.”
Both Lance and Jennifer are from Oklahoma. She’s a graduate of Tipton High School and he graduated from Duncan in 1991.
He still has maternal grandparents living here. Lance’s relatives include his father, the late Phil Morrisett, and his parents, OL and Mary Helen Morrisett, and his mother, Vickie Bradley Stamper’s parents.
His mother lives in Medina, Texas.
“JW and Jeanelle Bradley still live there. We’ve had lots of support, with friends at Eastside and Chisholm Trail Church of Christ. We just have a network of supporters who have helped us through this process.”
Jeanelle Bradley said she’s still trying to absorb the thought of having quadruplet great-grandchildren.
“Well, it’s kind of shocking. You never expect it to happen to you. We have some very sweet pictures, but I don’t think I really comprehend it because I haven’t got to hold them yet,” she said.
The Bradley’s are making plans to go to Kansas and hopefully meet the family when they arrive at the airport in Wichita.
As for Lance and Jennifer, he said, “We have no expectations. We are just enjoying each moment,” he said.
For those who are interested, Lance shared the details of each of the quadruplet newborns.
Emma Elizabeth was born at 10:31 a.m. weighing 4 pounds, 9 ounces; Kaden Zachary was born at 10:33 a.m. weighing 5 pounds, 2 ounces; Lane Dalston was born at 10:34 a.m. weighing 5 pounds, 9 ounces; and Bennett Grant was born at 10:35 a.m. weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces.
A press release issued by the hospital indicated that Elliott said Jennifer’s pregnancy was medically perfect and that making it to 34 weeks without being admitted for bed rest prior to the birth is a success.
— Toni Hopper is a reporter for The Duncan Banner. She can be reached at 580-255-5354, Ext. 132 or by e-mail at: toni.hopper@duncanbanner.com.
