WHEN Matt Davies and Katalina Martin got together in 2012 they decided they both wanted just one more baby.
Both of them separately had their own children, Faith, now 11, and Callum, now 10, but they were keen for a child together.
Sadly it wasn't easy and pregnancy test after pregnancy test showed negative results. Until one day in 2014 when two blue lines showed up revealing and Katalina, 31, happily, was pregnant. But - amazingly - it wasn't one baby... it was FOUR.
Beating 700,000 to one odds to conceive quads without IVF, in a case that's thought to be unique in the UK, Katalina’s eggs fertilised separately at the same time – creating four non-identical quads, who have just celebrated their fourth birthday.
Sofia, Aston, Amelia and Roman, who live with their parents in Stockport, Manchester, arrived in February 2015.
From getting through an eye-watering 20 nappies and 24 bottles of milk a day each at their peak, now Katalina tells her amazing story:
I was lying on the scanning table, wondering whether the sonographer would hear a heartbeat.
I’d been so thrilled when I fell pregnant as doctors had told me that they thought I had polycystic ovaries, which would make it difficult for me to get pregnant.
They’d put me on a low dose of medication to try and make things easier for me to conceive, but the months had gone by and each time I was disappointed. I thought I would never be a mum - that it would never happen for me, as each month left me crushed.
But then finally I had a positive pregnancy test.
I couldn’t believe it as I looked at the test stick in my hand.
When I saw the two little blue lines telling me I was finally pregnant at last, I was thrilled.
But I had a lot of agonising stomach pain, so it was really worrying.
Was I going to lose this baby, after all the heartache?
We were desperate to add to our family.
I went to the doctor who carried out hormone level blood tests over a couple of days.
Then a few days later I went on holiday for a week to Spain. The doctors rang me when I got back with the results of my blood test.
They told me I had to come in quick – my blood tests had shown something unusual.
Lying on the bed where they scan you, thoughts were racing through my mind.
I was worried in case the pregnancy was ectopic and I’d have to have my fallopian tubes removed. I’d never be a mum again.
The sonographer peered at the screen for what seemed like an eternity. I knew there was something wrong. Was she going to tell me it was ectopic? Or that there was no heartbeat? But nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to hear.
She turned to me. ‘I’ve seen three gestational sacs, possibly four,’ she said.
I just burst into tears. I couldn’t take it in. Was she telling me that I was pregnant with quadruplets? Surely that couldn’t be a problem. It had taken ages for me to fall pregnant.
Another doctor came in and confirmed the news. I was carrying four babies.
I went home and cried solidly.
It was such a shock, I couldn’t take it in. While I was thrilled to be pregnant and that it wasn’t ectopic, could I really cope with four babies?
I didn’t know of any other mum who had given birth to four all at once.
The doctors offered to terminate one or two of the babies.
It was risky for all of them and it was risky for me too. But I couldn’t consider getting rid of any of them. It was nature’s way, and I wanted to see what happened, to take a chance.
It was so rare that I’d fallen pregnant with four separate fertilised eggs. Usually naturally conceived quads happen when one or more embryos split, but experts had never heard of it happening like this before.
I was unique, and so were my babies. There was no way I could terminate any of them. They all had to be given a chance.
I had morning sickness until I was 12 weeks pregnant, and then luckily everything went smoothly until I was 30 weeks.
My belly was absolutely enormous. I kept saying to Matt I couldn’t believe it was going to get any bigger, but it just kept growing and growing.
It looked like I was going to pop.
When I was just 12 weeks pregnant I looked about five or six months gone and when I was 20 weeks pregnant I looked ready to give birth.
I had to stop working as a hairdresser because my bump was just too enormous. None of the clients could believe it when I told them I was actually having four babies.
I worried the whole time. What if anything happened to them?
Each time any of them moved, I knew which one it was.
I was admitted to St Mary’s Hospital in Manchester in early 2015 when I was 27 weeks pregnant and put on bed rest to try and prevent the quadruplets being born early.
The quads were born by caesarean section in February when I was 30 weeks pregnant.
Their delivery had been scheduled for 32 weeks, but it had to be done two weeks early after I started to develop the life threatening condition pre-eclampsia (high blood pressure).
Sofia weighed 3Ib 11oz, Roman 2Ib 13oz, Aston 3Ib 2oz and Amelia 3Ib 7oz. I was overwhelmed by relief when they were all born safe and well.
We were able to bring them home after a few days and found they all had different personalities. They all came from a different egg, with different sacs and placenta.
Aston is always happy and smiling, Sofia loves her food and is so placid, Roman may be the smallest but he’s the loudest one and everyone falls in love with Amelia.
It is hard work and cost us £200 a week on essentials when they were babies, but I wouldn’t change it for anything in the world.
They had to be bottle-fed as I couldn’t produce enough milk to satisfy them all. Often there were two crying when the first two were being fed. I got through 20 nappies a day and each baby guzzled six bottles of milk each day.
Still, having quads isn't always easy.
I was terrified, I am terrified everyday now.
You have to think of health and safety all the time, so they don't run across the road... taking them out on their bikes is really difficult.
They cost a lot too. Before we had them we wouldn't think of how much things cost, but now we have to take advantage of deals so of course it has had an impact on our finances but my husband is really hard-working and always does the best for the family.
When the quads were nearly four, we had a very special job for them. Matt and I were getting married, so they were out bridesmaids and pageboys. It was such a special day. They looked so cute in their little matching outfits.
It was amazing to tie the knot with Matt after everything we have achieved, building our family together. And not many brides can say that they had quadruplets as their bridal party. It was amazing to have them by our side as we exchanged our vows.
All six of the children, including Faith and Callum, were our bridal party, and it made us so proud - it really completed our special day having them all there by our side. Amelia and Sofia looked so pretty in their little dresses, with a ring of flowers in their hair.
All the guests watched us exchange our vows and then we had a lovely reception afterwards at a local golf club.
Matt and I wanted to have another baby, but we had never imagined having another four. Our family is definitely complete now. We won’t be trying again for another baby. Four is more than enough to cope with.
