(Columbia) - When Temekia Harris found out she was pregnant, she was hoping for a girl. Last week, she gave birth to five baby boys.
"No fertility drugs, no In-Vitro, absolutely nothing," explained Harris. "We had no plans for this."
On July 27th, Matthew Jared, Johnathan Glenn, Laten Lee, Nicolas Reid and Cody Ashton Smith were born via c-section at Palmetto Health Richland. The quintuplets were three months premature, and each baby weighed between one and two pounds at birth. "They're really small, but they're fighters," explained Harris, who said the babies are no longer on ventilators. "We can barely tell them apart, but they're doing really good. They're so handsome."
Harris and Ivan Smith, the quintuplets' father, said they had little time to prepare for five new arrivals. Harris was on bed rest for two months, while Smith took care of the couple's 9-year-old and 9-month-old boys.
"He's excited," said Smith, referring to the couple's 9-year-old son Carl Lee. "But poor little Joshua, he has no idea what's going on. He's going to be in for an awakening."
Fifteen weeks into the pregnancy, Harris said an ultrasound revealed she was carrying quadruplets. A few weeks later, another baby was spotted. "I just laughed," recalled Harris. "He was the first person I called, and I just laughed. He said, 'what can we do.'"
In order to care for the quintuplets, Harris and Smith said they will need everything from cribs to car seats to transportation. "We have a van now, but it's too small," explained Harris. "Of course, it's not going to fit all the car seats we need."
There is no word yet on when the quintuplets will be released from the hospital, according to Harris. She was released from Palmetto Health Richland on Tuesday.
If you would like to donate to the quintuplets, a fund has been set up at the Carolina First Bank located at 1501 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201. Contributions can be made to the Ivan Lee Smith Quintuplets Account at any branch location.
WLTX
7/31/2007 10:11:58 PM
