Sheppard couple has quadulets

Sept. 13--WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- When Hope and Jereme Barrera were hoping to have a child, their prayers were answered -- four times.

Jaxxon, Rylan, Paisley and Kinsley, fraternal quadruplets, arrived May 24, at Texas Harris Medical Center in Fort Worth. The couple and their babies just got back to Wichita Falls a couple weeks ago to begin their new life together.

Jereme is an F-22 maintenance instructor with the 82nd Training Wing at Sheppard Air Force Base. Hope and Jereme were stationed in Las Vegas, Nevada, and had been trying to get pregnant for about a year with no luck. After a visit to the Red Rock Fertility Center in Las Vegas, Hope found out she had polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), and she was not ovulating. Dr. Eva Littman put Hope on a low dose of Clomid, a medication that stimulates an increase in the amount of hormones that support ovulation. Littman told her the treatment probably would not work the first time, but after just one round, Hope found out she was pregnant December 10.

The couple moved to Wichita Falls in January, and they found out they were having quads at about six weeks. While she admittedly freaked out at first hearing of the quadruple blessing, Hope said Jereme has done really well through the whole process.

"My husband and I are good at communicating. There is no way we could do it otherwise," she said.

Hope was on bed rest at Texas Harris Medical Center in Fort Worth hospital at 20 weeks.

One of the baby's water broke at 25 weeks, but doctors wanted to delay the birth if possible. Hope went into labor and the quads were born by caesarian section at 27 weeks.

Paisley was born at 1 lb. 11 oz, Kinsley 1 lb. 14 oz., and Jaxxon and Rylan were both 2 lb. 2 oz. Jaxxon and Kinsely went home August 17, Rylan August 19 and Paisley, August 26.

The babies are all now about 9 lbs.

Rylan was born with from fluid on his brain and goes to Fort Worth monthly for treatment. Hope said he is recovering miraculously, but they won't know if they are any lasting issues until the baby reaches more growth milestones.

Jereme was able to get medical orders to be with Hope and the children at the hospital and he just returned to work Sept. 2.

The babies are on a strict schedule, eating every three hours around the clock. Hope said the feeding process takes about two hours if she is alone or one hour with help. The babies lie down for the night at 9 p.m. and get up at 9 a.m. The family goes through 32 bottles and at least 32 diapers every day.

Hope said some people cringe at the thought of four children at once. While it's definitely not easy, Hope said they are blessed.

"It was either that, or not have any," she said.

While the family has health insurance with Tricare through the Air Force, there are many other expenses that go along with having multiples.

"We need a lot of help," said Hope, both financially and with child care. She said there's always a need for supplies like diapers and wipes. They also need more car seats, strollers, and another crib. The biggest need is for another vehicle, as the family currently has a small sport utility vehicle with row seats that make it difficult to get to all the children. Hope's family lives in Florida and Jereme's lives in Memphis, Tennessee.

Friend Alyssa Williams started a GoFundMe page for the Barreras with a goal of raising $2,000 to help the family with expenses. Anyone wishing to donate to the Barrera family can go to the GoFundMe page at http://www.gofundme.com/7dvp50 or email Hope Barrera at [email protected].

___

(c)2014 the Times Record News (Wichita Fallas, Texas)

Visit the Times Record News (Wichita Fallas, Texas) at www.timesrecordnews.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services