Note: we are republishing this story which originally made the news in March 2020.
A Dallas couple has experienced a whirlwind of changes as they recently became the parents of exceptionally rare identical quadruplet boys.
Jenny Marr, the thrilled new mother, expressed her concern about the logistics of accommodating their growing family. “I drive a Honda Accord and Chris has a truck. So how is that gonna work? We have to go shopping. We’ve got to buy a new car,” she declares.
Prior to the birth of the babies on Sunday at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas, Good Day’s Lauren Przybyl had the opportunity to meet Jenny and her husband, Chris.
Jenny Marr and her husband Chris, Photo Credit: themarrthemerrier/Instagram
Both Jenny and Chris were taken aback when they learned that their family of two was about to expand to six. “She had this very worried look on her face. And I was like, ‘Oh no, there is no heartbeat.’ And she said, ‘Oh no. There is a heartbeat!’ And I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, we’re having twins.’ And she said, ‘No, guys. There are three heartbeats! There are three babies in here.’ And I was like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ It was terrifying,” Jenny recalled.
They were then referred to Dr. Ryan Reinheirt, one of the leading maternal-fetal medicine doctors in the area. During the sonogram, Dr. Reinheirt’s sonographer quickly realized that there were more than three babies in Jenny’s womb. “I said, ‘Oh no. Did we lose one? Is there something wrong with one of them?’ She said, ‘Well, I’m not supposed to tell you this but there are four babies in here. There are… I am absolutely positive there are four babies in here.’ And we just went speechless,” Jenny recounted.
Five ultrasound photos of the identical quadruplets, Photo Credit: themarrthemerrier/Instagram
Chris jokingly commented, “I think I turned to Dr. Ryan and I said, ‘I’m not coming back next week because there will be five.’”
The four boys are identical, originating from an egg that split four times after fertilization. Notably, fertility drugs were not involved in this remarkable occurrence.
It is worth noting that there have only been 72 documented cases of identical quadruplets worldwide, with the majority being girls. In the case of the Marrs, the pregnancy itself came as a tremendous surprise. “We didn’t do anything for this. It was a two-bottle-of-wine kind of night,” Jenny chuckled.
Jenny Marr with her newborn quadruplets, Photo Credit: themarrthemerrier/Instagram
Both Chris and Jenny grew up as only children. Reflecting on their own upbringing, Jenny shared, “That’s the crazy part too. We’re both an only child.” Chris added, “So we never had any brothers or sisters. I always hope if we had kids, we would have two since I know being an only child can get kind of boring sometimes.”
Before the babies’ birth, Jenny followed a 3,000-calorie diet. She admitted to being constantly hungry and shared a laugh about her active and growing boys. “They never stop! At nighttime, they bump up here and here and here… and they never stop. They never stop moving! It’s really uncomfortable sometimes,” she expressed.
Closeup of the newborn identical quadruplets, Photo Credit: themarrthemerrier/Instagram
In the NICU, all four of the babies—Hudson, Harrison, Henry, and Hardy—are thriving. Furthermore, the mother, Jenny, is also doing well in her recovery.