Preemie Triplets Healthy Enough to Go Home for Christmas

I’ll be home for Christmas means something extra-special for the Santiago family. Triplets born six weeks premature and underweight were released from the hospital Thursday — just in time for Mom, Dad and 3-year-old big brother Liam to celebrate Christmas with them at home in west suburban Berkeley.

“We won the baby lottery,” father Brandon Santiago said. They call themselves the Santiago Six now.

Born Dec. 6, the newest Santiagos — Ava, Finn and Kyle — were scheduled to be delivered by C-section on Dec. 21. But Heather Santiago developed high blood pressure, and her doctors at Loyola University Medical Center moved up delivery because of the danger that posed to the infants.

“They are completely healthy,” said Dr. Jonathan Muraskas, co-director of Loyola’s neonatal intensive care unit, as the babies were introduced at a Christmas Eve press conference along with the proud mama and papa. “Triplets have an increased risk for developmental problems, but I would be very confident that they are going to be completely normal.”

Dad, a firefighter/paramedic in nearby Villa Park, is ready for the challenge of triplets. He’s got 13,000 diapers stacked in his garage.

“We had a big diaper party,” Heather said. “We never would have expected to have this many kids, but we feel so lucky that we do.”

Loyola Medical Center photo of Liam