The Hathaway Family

Thad and Diane Hathaway gave birth to quintuplets on October 26, 2006. They were born at the University of Washington Hospital in Seattle, Washington.

Thad and Diane Hathaway

Thad and Diane Hathaway were married on March 27, 1999 in Pullman, Wa. They had their first son, Cody in 2001. Because of a syndrome Diane has, they need the help of fertility drugs to have children. When they found out they were pregnant on their first try with the meds they were thrilled. Doctors gave them only a 25% chance of success with one child. There were several unsuccessful attempts to have more children after Cody was about a year old. Adoption was an avenue they also looked into. They became certified as foster parents so they could adopt a child through the state. As time went on, Thad and Diane learned to become content with the family God had given them in Cody. Finances were definitely an issue whenever they tried for another child. They decided they had enough for one final try. If it worked they would be thrilled, and if not they would continue to be content with one child and close this chapter in their lives.

Another round of shots and ultrasounds were started in March of 2006. Four weeks later they discovered the final attempt to have a child was successful. At just 6 weeks along an ustrasound showed three babies. The Hathaways were shocked, but not overwhelmed. That didn’t come until 2 weeks later when babies “D” and “E” decided to make their appearance. Quintuplets! Thad was out of town for a work conference. Diane had to tell him the news over the phone. Thad remembers having his boss pull over so he could pace on the side of the road. Doctors advised selection reduction because of the tremendous risks to both the mom and babies. Thad and Diane decided to take that risk with much prayer for God’s grace because there was no way they would choose to end the life of any of their children.

At 14 weeks they toured the facility in Spokane where they would deliver their babies and Diane was put on bed rest at home. Two weeks later it was determined they would have to go to Seattle to deliver because their gerontologist moved to California. Extra planning needed to happen because of the distance between Seattle and their home (about 280 miles). The change was unexpected, but once again, God gave them peace in the midst of the difficult circumstances and provided for all their needs. In July of 2006 Diane headed to the University of Washington Medical Center. She would begin her mandatory bedrest there for the duration of the pregnancy. The doctors needed to keep a close eye on her and the babies. Too much walking or disturbance could stimulate her into labor.

Thad and Cody came every weekend and were allowed to stay right in Diane’s room. By week 26 of the pregnancy the babies were growing and doing well. The ultrasounds showed that they were all healthy. At this point Baby E, a girl, was showing a slower rate of growth. This would be monitored closely in the coming weeks. By now, Diane’s belly had grown very large and she was becoming tired very easily. It was decided that visiting would be limited to family only.

The biggest problem with having five babies in the womb is that they force a premature birth. Mom just can’t hold all of them in for the full nine months. If the babies are born too early they don’t have time to develop. They aren’t strong enough on their own, so the doctors do everything they can to deep the mother from starting labor for as long as possible.
Reaching 28 weeks in to the pregnancy was a big milestone. Giving birth before that time would mean lower chances for survival outside the womb. After 28 weeks their chances of being healthy significantly increase. Diane had gained over 70 pounds and her stomach measured 50 inches around! The babies were definitely doing their part by growing and growing and growing.

By the time Diane reached 29 weeks into the pregnancy she had spent 80 days in her hospital bed. She was given steroids to help the babies’ lungs grow as quickly as possible. They were known as Baby A through Baby E. Regular monitoring showed that Baby E was having decelerations in her heart rate. Thad and Diane had a difficult decision to make. At what point do you deliver everyone to save one? With information from their perinatologist (Diane’s doctor) and neonatologist (babies’ doctor) they decided that they would deliver to save their precious baby E if it was determined she was struggling to survive in the womb. At 31 weeks and 6 days the babies were showing signs that they needed to be delivered from their very cramped living quarters. October 26th was the day they got to meet their babies. Thirty four doctors and nurses were needed to safely bring Caleb Robert, Gabriel Richard, Alison Mae, Seth James, and Renae Kate into the world. Sadly, Renae Kate was stillborn. It was a shock to everyone in the room. Thad and Diane had to learn how to deal with intense sorrow and joy all at the same time. They were so excited about their four babies who were doing well and devastated about the loss of Renae. On November 2 Seth had to be rushed to Children’s Hospital in Seattle for emergency surgery on his colon. He had developed NEC (Necrotizing Enterocolitis) which is an infection in the intestines. A portion of his colon had perforated so it was removed and Seth was given a colostomy until it was time to reconnect his colon. Seth had to undergo two weeks of complete bowel rest which meant he couldn’t eat and his nutrition came intravenously. The IV nutrition combined with no food also caused damage to his liver. It was extremely difficult having the babies at two different hospitals. The Caleb, Alison, and Gabe were thriving. Just 2 weeks after birth they were moved to a level 2 nursery. In the middle of all this plans were made for their Renae Kate to be buried in Spokane. They decided to hold a very private burial with only Thad and Diane being there. On December 8, Alison and Gabe came home. Our home at the time was an apartment that was close to the hospitals. Initially Thad and Diane were living at a friend’s guest home, but the 30 minute drive to the hospital proved to be too much to handle. In order to give Cody the needed time and attention he also needed, Thad’s mom joined them at the apartment. On December 11, Caleb joined the family at “home”. It was thrilling to bring the babies home.

Thad and Diane divided their time between their three babies and Cody at the apartment and Seth at the hospital. They worked very hard to keep things as “normal” and fun as possible for Cody in the midst of very difficult circumstances. Christmas was spent at the apartment and Thad’s Dad was also able to come and help for a couple of weeks. In the small two bedroom apartment lived four adults, a five year old, and 3 newborns. Needless to say, there was never a dull moment!!

Making life work in Seattle became increasingly difficult so it was decided that Seth could be transferred to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane (only 75 miles from Pullman). Diane’s parents live there, so the family could live there until Seth was given the green light to go home. Plans were made for Diane and the kids to make their way to Spokane and Thad would ride with Seth on the transport. The infection Seth had recurred so Seth couldn’t be moved. These were probably the most difficult days because the family was split up. Being away from Seth was extremely painful for Diane, and the same was true for Thad as he was away from Caleb, Gabe, Alison, and Cody. Again they did all they could to make the best of difficult times. Alison, Caleb, and Gabe were thriving and doing great. They loved all the attention they received while living at Grandpa and Grandma’s. Seth continued to fight for his health and was eventually able to be transported to Sacred Heart in Spokane.

Finally, on July 5, 2007 Seth came home for good. On 2 other occasions he came home but was rushed back to the hospital after a couple of days because the infection came back. After two surgeries and five occurrences of NEC (which is extremely rare) he was well enough to come home. Thad and Diane are so grateful for his life. Seth never gave up and because of the prayers of so many people he was healed.

Today the babies are all happy, growing, and doing so very well. Busy would be a good word to describe the group. Cody started Kindergarten, so he gets a break from the action for a few hours a day. There is always something happening in the Hathaway home.

With the new members of their family, Thad and Diane realized they needed to expand their house to give them more room. They have a conversion crawl space that would be perfect to convert into a basement giving them a new family room and additional bedroom, bathroom, and laundry space. The former family room became the nursery. As you might expect, it is a real financial burden to raise such a large family. With only one income, they couldn’t afford to remodel on their own. Fortunately the Quintuplet Foundation has offered to organize support in their community and there have been some who have offered to donate time and materials to help them with this project. Hopefully everything will come together and work will begin soon so the Hathaways can gain more space in their home.

So much has happened since this was written. To learn more about the Hathaways and see what they are up to now please go to … www.aquintupletstory.blogspot.com

We have been organizing an effort to help them remodel their basement in order to make room for the new additions to their family. Click on the Remodeling link to see more details.

If you wish to donate to help the Hathaway family with their remodeling efforts, visit our Support page.