Pregnant with quintuplets, Melissa and Rosemary reveal the preparations they’ve been making for their babies’ arrival.
Melissa Keevers takes a deep breath as her partner Rosemary Nolan puts a protective hand on her protruding belly. Since the same-sex couple from Brisbane first revealed to Woman’s Day they were expecting quintuplets in October, Melissa’s bump has been getting bigger by the day.
“When I tell people I’m pregnant with quins they’re surprised I’m not the size of a house,” smiles the 27-year-old. “Then I remind them I’m only 21 weeks pregnant. I’m the size of someone who’s nine months pregnant with one baby. So with five … I’ll be huge!”
Although Melissa’s due date is April 7, doctors warned her babies would arrive well before then. “My body won’t be able to physically make it [to full term],” she says. “The doctors would like me to get to 30 weeks. But anywhere over 24 minimises the risks, so we’re hoping I’ll last as long as possible.”
As we prepared to go to press, Melissa was under medical supervision and on steroids to try to forestall labour, but until now her pregnancy has been straightforward. “Everything has gone so well,” she says.
“The babies have been tracking along nicely size-wise and I feel good.” “She’s been eating non-stop though!” laughs an attentive Rosemary, 22. “I’m eating for six!” exclaims Mel. “At the beginning I was craving pickles, but now I’m eating everything – meat, fruit, nuts, bread …”
The only downside of pregnancy, Mel admits, is that she’s struggling to wind down from her usual parenting duties to the couple’s 15-month-old daughter, Lily.
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