Phelps quadruplets now home with parents and big brothers

Jennifer Lewke News10NBC

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PHELPS, N.Y. — In a small home along a quiet road in Phelps, the Smith family plays with their goat, feeds their big pig, and lets their chickens roam.  It’s a bit of a zoo outside and maybe inside too. 

Karissa VanCamp-Smith and her husband Dillion Smith are the proud new parents of naturally-conceived, identical quadruplet boys in addition to their two older sons. 

The baby boys came into the world at 11 weeks early but thankfully are all healthy and have been home for about a month now. 

See our past coverage:

Jennifer Lewke (News10NBC) – What were those first couple of days like?

In a small home along a quiet road in Phelps, the Smith family plays with their goat, feeds their big pig and lets their chickens roam.  It’s a bit of a zoo outside and maybe inside too. 

Karissa VanCamp-Smith – A blur, I don’t even think I remember it.  I think it was just pure survival, yep, pure survival mode, trying to figure everything out. 

Jennifer Lewke –  So, what’s an average day like now?

Karissa VanCamp-Smith – Well, we all cry a couple of times at least but for the most part, we wake up and everybody eats, diapers get changed and then we change our PJs, we get some snuggles in and then we do it all again, every few hours.

Jennifer Lewke – I think any mom at home will say you’re breastfeeding all these babies that is a job in and of itself, more than a full-time job, how do you keep up? Do you get any personal time for yourself?

Karissa VanCamp-Smith – Absolutely not, no but that’s OK, that’s OK that’s not the season of life we’re in right now. 

The Smiths have done the math and figure they use about 800 diapers per month.  On most days, Karissa handles the babies on her own while Dillion works full-time but if she needs reinforcements, her mom lives right next door, “I think it’s the comfort blanket of knowing that she’s right there and I can call her and there has been a few times where I’m like, “are you busy?” and before she even answers I can see her walking across the yard and I’m like OK,” she says.

Jennifer Lewke – So, the only struggle really is transportation, what does it take to get you guys out of the house right now?

Karissa VanCamp-Smith – A few hours, a lot of patience, and two vehicles.  Transit vans are either out of stock right now or out of our price range. We also have to have the extra cargo space, not just for the baby’s stuff but we also have our little guy with special needs that we have to be able to take his medical equipment and have to have a walker for him and his wheelchair if he needs it, that sort of thing.

So for now, they’re making do with what they have and making memories one day at a time and one tiny smile at a time.

The Smith’s baby registry can be found here.