For their sons Shayden, 12, and Landon, 7, Jamie and Skyler, 36, had longed for a brother. But because Jamie had polycystic ovarian syndrome, the couple had been trying to conceive for five years. The first IUI reproductive cycle they tried didn’t work, but the second one did.
And while they knew there was a higher chance of multiple births, they were told the chances of conceiving five babies was 0.003%.
Jamie Scott, a mother of two, couldn’t wait for her first scan after years of longing for a third child to complete her family.
She was shocked as the sonographer read the results, “One… two… three… four…” then, as a few moments ticked by, “Five!”. Instead of the one baby she planned, Jamie and her husband Skyler were expecting quintuplets.
“After the five babies were found at the scan, the first question I asked was ‘Are they alive?’ I knew multiple pregnancies were a risk to both mum and the babies,” says 33-year-old Jamie.
“Thankfully all five were a perfect size, each with a strong heartbeat. We were flooded with relief.”
“After the scan, we were so excited we pulled the boys out of school and filmed them as I asked how many babies they thought were in my belly,” Jamie says.
“Shayden guessed triplets and Landon quads. Their mouths gaped open when I told them we were having five babies.”
Jamie’s pregnancy turned out to be different from those she experienced with her sons.
“By 18 weeks, I looked nine months pregnant. We went to the hospital for another scan and were thrilled to discover we were expecting three girls and two boys. We wanted Shayden and Landon to have a sister and now they were getting three!”
They just named them babies A, B, C, D, and E as they struggled to come up with five names.
Despite not suffering much from sickness, being pregnant with quintuplets presented different challenges for Jamie.
Jamie recalls: “In a hospital room with six doctors, we began to panic. I asked if we had any hope of saving the pregnancy and one doctor replied ‘no’. He told us we would lose all of our babies.
“We were absolutely devastated.”
Then something incredible happened… the labour stopped and the membrane healed.
Jamie says: “The chances of that happening were slim to none. After that, I was kept in hospital. But then there was another problem.
“My white blood cell count was getting dangerously high.”
Jamie’s body miraculously repaired itself a second time, and she was placed on bed rest. Her contractions began when she was 29 weeks pregnant.
“The infants needed to be delivered right away,” she explains. “Before I was wheeled into the theatre, Skyler kissed me.
“When I came round, Skyler was smiling and told me we had five tiny but perfect babies. I burst into tears. I couldn’t believe we had done it.”
Violet Rose weighed 2 pounds 6 ounces, Daisy Kate 2 pounds 9 ounces, Logan Matthew 2 pounds 2 ounces, Lincoln Alan 2 pounds, and Lily Jane 2 pounds 3 ounces.
“My heart was so full,” Jamie says. “I gazed at them all, taking in the 50 tiny fingers and 50 tiny toes before me.
“They were more beautiful than I ever thought they’d be.
Jamie adds: “Skyler and I agree we’ll be tired for the next 18 years, and we’re hugely outnumbered by our kids, but we’re ready for the madness. Bring it on!”
Now, their quintuplets are almost two, and Skyler and Jamie are sharing the ups and downs on their Facebook channel, “Five-Two Love.” They are the most recent winners of the “The Family Is…” award, and we can’t think of better recipients!
