The couple were ready to become a large family. But to be so large – no, no one planned this.
The first baby in the family of Amy and Chad Kempel did not appear immediately. First there were two years of fruitless attempts to conceive, then a course of infertility treatment, then a long-awaited pregnancy with twins. Which ended in tragedy: the babies were born prematurely, only at the 22nd week. They were not at all ready to enter this world, their doctors were unable to leave. And then – a miracle! – Amy got pregnant again.
“Every day I wondered if this was the last day of my pregnancy. I didn’t get to enjoy this time, ”says Amy.
Fortunately, everything ended well: Amy and Chad’s firstborn, little Savannah, is already six years old. Then the second daughter, Avery, was born. The girl is already four years old. And then Chad insisted on having another child.
“I would stick with two kids. When we had only one daughter, I did fine. With two it was already more difficult: it seemed to me that I paid little attention to children, I felt guilty, even depression began. And it’s not easy when there are two children in our arms, and the husband is at work all the time. But Chad really wanted a third, ”recalls Amy.
And they tried again, even though it was scary: it was impossible to forget the bad experience of the first pregnancy. Amy got pregnant successfully. And then it was time for the first screening. To say that both were shocked is to say nothing.
“Lord, there were five of them! You have no idea how we felt. It was very scary – after all, if Amy’s body could not cope with the twins, then how does she endure five? We were terrified to be honest, ”says Chad.
The Kempels tried to find the best doctors who could manage such a difficult pregnancy. They also tried to think about the future as little as possible. After all, seven children are not for the faint of heart.
Amy began labor at 27 weeks. All five babies were born alive. And then, after 63 long days in intensive care, Lincoln, Noel, Grayson, Preston, and Gabriella headed home.
“We couldn’t believe it. And then we saw how every day our babies become more and more like ordinary newborns. And we realized that we will bring home five absolutely healthy children. But we didn’t even buy anything in advance. We were afraid to jinx it, ”smiles Chad.
Now fives are already three years old. The life of this family is sheer surrealism, an adventure for which no one was ready, which no one expected. And the most difficult thing is to find time for each other. Not every couple is able to save a family when there are so many children around.
“We went to therapy together, we conducted consultations for couples ourselves – this is useful. It is very difficult to find a nanny, but in the end we also succeeded in this, ”parents of large families say.
Daddy Chad ran a 10-kilometer marathon with this stroller
But now there is so much love in their house as never before.
“My favorite thing to do is just lie on the floor and let the little ones crawl over me. I love it! They even climb on my head, hug me – it’s amazing, ”says Chad.
Both Amy and Chad are confident that the best and happiest times for their family are yet to come.