NJ Parents Welcome Quadruplets Born In Essex County: 'Completely Unexpected Blessing'

LIVINGSTON, NJ — In the blink of an eye, Aja Kennon and Emmanuel Volmar's family grew from three to seven when they welcomed quadruplets, born July 1 at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center.

Doctors at the Livingston medical facility confirmed the births of Ean, Evan, Eamon and Alayha, who were welcomed by their parents, 9-year-old Emmanuel Jr. and a team of more than 20 medical professionals.

"To find out I was having four, it was like, 'Wow,'" Kennon told News 12 New Jersey. "That's either something you see on TV, or you think of that being somebody else's story, not yours."

Kennon and Volmar also shared their journey in an interview with People. Upon learning Kennon was pregnant with quadruplets, Volmar said he thought it was a joke.

"I was just in shock, I couldn't believe it," he said.

While it wasn't a joke, it's not something that happens often. Dr. Joanne Bishara, director of neonatology at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, noted that the likelihood of conceiving quadruplets naturally is around 1 in 700,000.

"It is very rare to happen naturally, and so the fact that it did and to have four healthy babies carried to term speaks to our (team) here and how well they took care of mom prenatally," Bishara told News 12.

Kennon was 34 weeks pregnant when the babies made their debut.

As for their names, Kennon and Volmar chose names for the boys that started with the letter E, just like their dad's name, while they chose Alayha for their baby girl, a nod to the first letter of her mom's name.

A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family to help with baby essentials, medical essentials and other costs. According to the fundraiser, Kennon works for the U.S. Postal Service and Volmar is a truck driver. Any funds raised will also help Volmar take time off work to spend time with the babies, the family wrote.

"We were prepared for another baby, but this completely unexpected blessing has turned our world upside down — in the most beautiful, chaotic way," the family wrote. "We are overjoyed, filled with love and gratitude."