Having been told at the age of 15 she would ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ have children, Charlene Medlicott thought her dreams of starting a family were over. She was ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsᴇᴅ with ᴘᴏʟʏᴄʏsᴛɪᴄ ᴏᴠᴀʀʏ sʏɴᴅʀᴏᴍᴇ, a ᴄᴏɴᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴ that ɪɴᴛᴇʀғᴇʀᴇs with ᴏᴠᴜʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴ. The ᴅᴏᴄᴛᴏʀs told her that if she ever was able to become ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ, it would almost certainly require ⒾⓋⒻ. This was ᴅᴇᴠᴀsᴛᴀᴛɪɴɢ news for a young woman who hoped to someday have children.
But five years on she has ᴅᴇғɪᴇᴅ twenty five-million-to-one odds by giving birth to quadruplets. Remarkably, all four were ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇɪᴠᴇᴅ naturally, in a quadruplet ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ which is considered to be very ʀᴀʀᴇ and potentially very ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴏᴜs. She and her fiance Mark Connaughton were surprised but overjoyed, doubly so since she was expecting twins. Charlene’s next ᴜʟᴛʀᴀsᴏᴜɴᴅ redoubled the surprise and joy. It turned out she had quadruplets on the way! The chances were something like 1 in 25 million. And upon discovering she was ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ with quadruplets, ᴅᴏᴄᴛᴏʀs advised her to ᴀʙᴏʀᴛ two of them to give the other two a better chance of sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴀʟ. In December 2011, Charlene gave birth to four healthy girls, Gracie-Lou, Rosaline, Amalia-Rose, and Eveylynn. Charlene said:” I nearly ᴅɪᴇᴅ because my ᴡᴇɪɢʜᴛ ᴅʀᴏᴘᴘᴇᴅ, I just couldn’t eat enough for all of us. I was eating enough for the babies but not for me. I don’t really remember the ʟᴀʙᴏʀ which was when I was 30 weeks, I just remember seeing three ʜᴇᴀᴅs.” She can be forgiven for not remembering the fourth!
Mark, in particular, sᴛʀᴜɢɢʟᴇᴅ to tell the girls ᴀᴘᴀʀᴛ, so he decided to pay for a ⒹⓃⒶ test to determine if they were identical quadruplets. Sure enough, they were! He said:” It feels extremely special now we know they’re identical but I’m going to have to find a way of telling them ᴀᴘᴀʀᴛ. They soon tell me, though, when I call them the wrong name. I am sure they will be using it to their advantage when they are older.” More than 100 friends and family turned up to see the babies christened at the Shropshire ceremony. Proud parents Charlene and Mark dressed their daughters in identical traditional christening gowns and shows – with their own style hairbands to tell them ᴀᴘᴀʀᴛ. The christening at St Michael’s Church in Madeley, West Mids, comes as the couple plan to marry, after being engaged since 2010, and they have four beautiful bridesmaids already to hand. Evelynn Lillian Julie and her twin Rosaline Anita Mae were born ᴘʀᴇᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇʟʏ in the same delivery as Gracie-Lou Anne and her twin Amalia-Rose Rachael on December 11, 2011. They all spent several weeks in neo-natal care before their parents were allowed to take them home.
Charlene said: “We have learned to deal with them very well – they are all very well behaved babies. They cry when they want something but then they just go back to sleep. There’s always one who wants something though. You can tell they will argue when they are older – they already have little tiffs to get more attention.”
