Some of the best advice I have gotten from Dr. Tabor was to check out the blog of a former patient of his who delivered quads, Suz Steece.  Reading her blog helped me in so many ways, especially by proving to me that this CAN be done, and also a little bit about what to expect.  I mean, there is no “What to Expect When You’re Expecting Quads” book.   After reading Suz’s blog for a while, I figured out how to connect with her and a few other local quad moms via blogs, email, and even Facebook.  They have been AMAZING with advice and support.

One huge question we had for the quad moms was what type of car seats and strollers to get.  I mean is it best to use convertible car seats so they last longer?  Do you need carriers?  Should we get twin strollers? Invest in a quad stroller?  No one else knew what to tell us, but the quad moms did. Based on all the sage advice, we decided we needed Graco Snugride car seats that would accommodate preemies (the NICU nurse also told us that).  To go with the car seats, we need two twin Snap and Go strollers, which are basically frames that you snap the car seat carrier onto.  But, since I like freedom, we would need a quad stroller.  Quad strollers are a bit tricky and ultimately the moms mostly preferred a Runabout stroller because it is lightweight, easy to steer, and fits through doorways.  It is actually the same model the Gosselin’s had for their sextuplets.  Without a stroller like that we’d be confined to our house unless there was more than one adult around.  Believe it or not, the quad moms said ‘”may think you’re not brave enough to go out alone, but you will want out, and you will need a quad stroller to do it”.  This is totally true too, because I know I’d get cabin fever.  When we had a snow storm last year, I went stir crazy after about 2 days!  The problem with this particular quad stroller is that it is quite expensive.  I don’t think there’s a huge market for them so I’m sure it’s a supply and demand thing.

So, here’s the cool thing about my online connections.  Casey Gerwer, a local quad mom, sent me a message asking if we’d like to buy their Runabout for a fraction of the original price (her quads are now four and just outgrew it).  YES!!!!  Of course we wanted it!  The day after I got Casey’s message, Suz sent me a similar one since her quads are also four, but Casey beat her to the punch.  So tonight, we headed to the Gerwer’s house to pick up the Runabout and meet everyone.  Finally meeting Casey in person was fantastic!  She is so sweet and welcoming.  She shared some of her experiences and answered our questions.  Her husband had some great advice for George too, “get an egg crate mattress pad for when you crash at the hospital because the beds are awful”.  It was also nice to meet the quads.  I mean, we’ve never actually seen any before.  They were all very well behaved as they finished eating their dinner.  There was lots of chatter of course, but everyone stayed at the table and obeyed their parents.  Not to mention..they are adorable!!!!

Here is George with the Runabout.  It is a pretty cool contraption actually.  It has a cool hitch for the back of the van so it’s easy to take traveling, the seats tilt for comfort, there is a handy little sun shade, and basket for storage.  If we decide to become serious runners, we can also go up to 10 mph with it (can you imagine that???)

The quad moms warned that while this is the best stroller for quads, it will attract attention. I figure, we will attract a lot of attention anyways! We might as well be practical about it.

In addition to raising four year old quadruplets, Casey has a web-based business called Designed for Babies that makes t-shirts and other stuff for families with multiples.  They say cute things like “Be nice, I’m expecting quads” (too bad I didn’t have that one today when I was shopping in a motorized cart), “Quadruplets zone defense”, and “Got Quads?”  She was sweet and hooked us up with some of her favorite designs, including onsies for the babies.  Her line is sold at http://designedforbabies.com/home.htm

She is one amazing quad mama!

Here are the onsies from Casey for the quads. So cute!!!!

Hugs!

Amber