Rare identical quadruplets born in Arizona
PHOENIX (CNN, KYMA/KECY) - When you're expecting a bundle of joy, one thing you don't expect is four of them.
Carrying quadruplets is rare and risky, which is why one mom traveled across the country to improve the odds.
These precious moments were never guaranteed.
"Probably a one in 30 to 40 million chance," said Dr. John Elliott, an obstetrician.
When the nurse went silent during an ultrasound, Rachel Vargas braced for bad news.
"This nice lady is gearing up to tell me that this baby has a heart defect," Vargas shared.
But the reality was even more rare and more dangerous, according to doctors.
"Then she said, 'Right now, there are four of them,'" Vargas recounted.
Through sobs, she broke the news to her husband, Marco.
A Reddit search brought her to the Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome Foundation, which led them from Rhode Island to Banner Health in Phoenix, which led them to Dr. Elliott.
"I don't think anybody would want to conceive spontaneous quadruplets. You're given that by by God, and then you deal with it," Elliott expressed.
For most of her pregnancy, Vargas was on bed rest, cut off from her regular life.
It was possible not all the babies would make it, but at 30 weeks pregnant, on January 24, Sofia, Philomena, Veronica, and Isabel were born, each weighing about three pounds.
"It's something that many times, we certainly hoped for, but maybe at times knew we might not expect," Vargas shared.
Looking at her four newborns and thinking about her one- and three-year-olds back home, she imagines a future she never could have conceived when all of this began.
"Playing in the grass with them, with our other children, just taking them home and being a normal family again," Vargas said.
Marco and Rachel say they are hoping to leave the NICU on April 1, actually their original due date.
When asked if they would be open for more kids, Vargas said, "We would be open to more once it's safe."
For now, Vargas is focused on getting outside for the first time in weeks, and hoping other moms see her story, and believe they, too, can defy the odds.
