Newborn Sextuplets Make Adorable Rainbow for First Sibling Photo Shoot

Courtney and Eric Waldrop dressed their newborn sextuplets up for a rainbow-themed photo shoot, [...]

Courtney and Eric Waldrop dressed their newborn sextuplets up for a rainbow-themed photo shoot, and the outcome is more precious than they could have hoped for.

The Waldrop babies are named Rivers, Rayne, Rawlings, Blu, Tag and Layke. According to a report by People, they were born on Dec. 11 at Huntsville Hospital in Alabama. They join three older siblings, Saylor, Wales and Bridge, to make a total of nine Waldrop offspring.

"It's an amazingly joyful feeling to have all six babies at home with us. Our lives have been forever changed," the couple said shortly after the birth of their six babies. "We are blessed beyond words and so excited to get life started with these sweet little miracles from above."

The sextuplets were born after just under 30 weeks of pregnancy, but they arrived happy, healthy and whole. Courtney and Eric Waldrop were holding their six newborns in their arms just six months after announcing their pregnancy for the first time.

The couple arranged the photo shoot with Ashley Sargent, an Alabama-based photographer who does a lot of work with babies and children. She photographed the babies side by side, each bundled in a different primary color, comprising a rainbow.

Sargent's photos of the babies will reportedly appear in an upcoming edition of Huntsville Hospital's in-house magazine. In addition, they're up on the Waldrop family's facebook page, titled "God's Divine Nine-Miracles in the Making - Waldrop Sextuplets."

Eric and Courtney Waldrop told People that they met in middle school. Years later, they married in 2004. They always shared the dream of having a large family, but they reportedly experienced several miscarriages before finally having Saylor in 2008.

The Waldrops said they used various fertility treatments, and their second pregnancy yielded the twins, Wales and Bridge. After another miscarriage, Courtney became pregnant again a few months ago with the help of fertility treatments, and the couple was shocked to learn that they were having sextuplets.

"I was scared to death," Courtney confessed. "I'm a smaller framed girl, and my first thoughts were on how I was going to successfully get six kids here without something happening to them or me. There was a lot of fear. We didn't know what to do or think."

The Waldrops were warned about the various dangers of carrying so many babies to term at once, to both them and the mother. Doctors let them know about a process called "selective reduction," where the number of fetuses is decreased to reduce medical danger.

The Waldrops weren't interested. "We are strong in our faith, but you never know how you're going to feel when you're actually in those shoes," Courtney said. "When we let it go and turned it all over to [God], those fears—though we know the risks are still there—were lifted from us."

The risk worked out, as all six babies are reportedly home safe. Not only that, but TLC has produced a documentary about the growing family, which is expected to air in the fall.

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