And they said she couldn’t have kids ...
MIRACLE: Robert and Chantel Emery defied predictions when Chantel gave birth to four babies
Bradley
Gabriel
Daniel
Harvey THE Emery family thought they were well prepared when doctors told them to expect a boy. But what happens when you end up with four? And almost three months before their due date?
Dad Robert Emery has had to ramp up the renovation schedule at the family home in Roodepoort — a custom-made cot is being built and even grandpa Raymond Oliver has had to pitch in to help meet the demands of the unexpected tots.
“I’ll have to buy a taxi to fit them all in one car,” joked Robert.
The births are even more miraculous, because Chantel Emery, paralysed from the waist down seven years ago, was told by doctors that she would never be able to have children.
Three years ago the couple defied medical advice and had a daughter, Scarlett. Last year, the couple decided to try for a boy.
The first visit to the gynaecologist this year confirmed they were expecting a boy. Later, a 4D scan showed three boys.
One morning at home two weeks ago, Chantel, who is unable to feel contractions because of her disability, discovered she had given birth to one son — and two more quickly followed.
Three-year-old Scarlett and her 13-year-old brother Joshua screamed for help. “All I saw was blood,” said Joshua.
Heavier and bigger than the other three, the fourth boy, Harvey, had gone unnoticed inside his mother’s womb.
The four brothers, weighing between 805g and 1.1kg, are all in the intensive care unit at Flora Clinic in Roodepoort, hooked up to machines and tubes that help them breathe and feed.
The first three boys, Bradley, Daniel and Gabriel, look identical, with similar facial features and blonde hair. Robert and his wife struggle to tell them apart.
Harvey is darker and has more hair than the other boys.
The couple visit them four times a day but are not allowed to touch them, in part because the babies’ skin is delicate.
For Robert, 37, an estate agent, this means he has eight children. He has three teenagers — one boy and two girls — from his previous marriage.
The Emerys have had to make several adjustments to prepare for the new additions to the family, including building alterations and having a custom cot built that would make access easier for Chantel.
I’ll have to buy a taxi to fit them all in one car
The family are well aware of the financial strain that comes with having a bigger family.
“I will have to sell more houses than I do now to make extra money,” said Robert.
Their neighbours have also offered to help the couple prepare dinner when the babies arrive. Others have donated special nappies for the quads.
But the couple know they will need more than that when the boys come home in September.
In the meantime, the proud parents wait anxiously for the day they are able to hold their boys and finally take them home.
“Luckily I run a catering business. Every dinner will be like catering for an event,” said Chantel.