On that day, the pastor of the Evangelical Covenant Church in Sloan, Iowa, and his wife, Mimi, became the grandparents of quadruplets. The children were born to his son Aaron and daughter-in-law, Tina.
The infants arrived just three and a half hours after Obama took the oath of office, which means they may have their own historical significance. “We figure they have to be the first quads of the new administration,” says Rich, laughing.
The three boys and one girl are now affectionately referred to as “The God Squad,” he adds.
None of the quadruplets are identical. Physicians told Rich that the odds of that happening were roughly one in a million. “They look very different,” he says.
Rich says one of the first questions people ask is whether Tina was taking fertility drugs. She wasn’t.
The quadruplets arrived at 29 weeks, which is about normal for quadruplets, Moore says. Jack was 2 pounds, 4 ounces; Joe was 2 pounds, 11 ounces; Grace was 2 pounds, 10 ounces. Noah, the last to be born, was 1 pound, 14 ounces.
The children remain in intensive care at Methodist Hospital in Omaha. So far they are doing well, although Jack may require surgery that will enable medical staff to drain excess brain fluid as needed, according to a website that tracks the children’s progress (registration required).
Rich knows the challenges of having children born prematurely. His son Paul was born at 29 weeks too. “If you’ve never seen it before, it’s a pretty scary thing,” he says.
Tina was confined to bedrest at the hospital for seven weeks prior to the birth.
Sloan is roughly 80 miles north of Omaha, so Rich doesn’t get to see the babies as often as he would like. The members of his church also wish the quadruplets and their parents lived nearby.
“The number one thing said to us is, ‘Too bad they don’t live around here because they would have a whole church of babysitters,’ ” Rich says.
The quadruplets are the first grandchildren on either side of the family. The quads’ great-grandparents on both sides had twins, however.
The family has been keeping a good sense of humor. When Aaron learned of the birth of octuplets in California, he sent his father a one-word text message. It read “Outdone.”
