Welcoming Quintuplets Turned This Family of 4 Into a Family of 9: “I Think It’s a Miracle”

In December, a New York hospital helped deliver quintuplets born to a family of 4, making them a family of 9 overnight. All five babies were born premature but healthy. The family calls it “a miracle.”

Quintuplets Born to Family of 4, Making it a Family of 9 Overnight

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Jessica Lottbrein was the second woman in Buffalo, NY, to ever have quintuplets.

“Do you consider it a miracle?” a news person asked Jessica and her husband, John.

“I think so,” John said, nodding. Jessica added, “I think it was meant to be.” 

“It’s extremely rare,” said Valerie Elberson, associate medical director of the NICU at Golisano Children’s Hospital. “The numbers I have seen are one in fifteen in a year in all of the world, and in Buffalo we’ve only had it happen one other time.”

“First finding out, I had a full blown panic attack, and I think John also went into a state of shock too,” Jessica said. “But when I was panicking saying, ‘What are we going to do,’ he was like, ‘We’ll figure it out.’”

The Medical Team Had it All Figured Out

Jessica and John knew the babies would be born prematurely, but didn’t know when. But the hospital was prepared when Jessica’s water broke just after midnight on Dec. 18. 

Approximately 30 hospital staff members helped welcome the babies’ arrival. Some of them were on call, coming from their homes to help. The specialties included obstetrics, the NICU, nursing, pharmacy, and respiratory therapy. 

“It was sort of like a well-oiled machine,” said Dr. Kavya Rao. “Each baby had about five team members designated for each baby.”

They named the babies Connor, Mason, Layla, Holly, and Stefan. 

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Even though Jessica was always at risk of early delivery, the doctors advised her to keep life normal. 

“Still going out and spending time with my daughters, dropping my oldest daughter at school, picking her up,” she said. “As the holidays rolled around, making sure the holidays stayed the same.”

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A Quick and Smooth Delivery, All Things Considered

“I was wheeled right in right before two, and Mason was out at 2:03 and Connor (the last baby born) was out by 2:11,” Jessica said. “It was so incredibly fast. It went for the most part, as smoothly as I remember.”

“The Level IV NICU was the reason we chose Golisano,” Jessica said. “Being the only one in Western New York, we wanted all the babies to stay together.”

The babies are still in the NICU as they grow stronger. They currently weigh about 4 pounds each. 

It Was ‘Meant to Be’

“That’s what we said, it’s like, well, someone wanted us to have five babies,” said Jessica, who also has two older daughters. “This was not IVF, I did not implant five embryos. It wasn’t the goal to try for multiples. When it happened, it was like fate. We’re meant to be the parents to quintuplets, I guess.”

Jessica works as a 911 dispatcher. One of her coworkers created a GoFundMe to raise $13,000 for the family while Jessica was pregnant.  

“I think what amazes me personally the most is the fact that she is still working as an overburdened 911 dispatcher emergency medical services. As her first response family, we are trying to raise as much as possible to help alleviate this hardship that is coming to her,” Jessica’s coworker said.

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The family’s GoFundMe has already raised $11,600.

It’s amazing that this family got quintuplets without IVF—and that they are all here and thriving. Any pregnancy with multiple babies is high risk, and sadly, sometimes, not all the babies make it. So, this certainly is a miracle, and the parents are very grateful.

WATCH: Welcoming Quintuplets Turned This Family of 4 Into a Family of 9: “I Think It’s a Miracle”

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h/t: 2 WGRZ

Featured Image Credit: YouTube/WKBW TV | Buffalo, NY

Michaela Gordoni is an avid reader and part-time globe-trotter. With a bachelor's degree in International Relations and experience in the non-profit world, she has a passion for people and reporting. You can check out her portfolio here.