Baby No. 3 of five goes home

With all the boys home and the girls soon to follow, the Wesley Chapel family is adjusting.

[Times photo: Stefanie Boyar] Nurse Nancy Bird carries Cody Samoano, now weighing 4 pounds 2 ounces, as he and his parents Kathy and Jack Samoano of Wesley Chapel leave Tampa General Hospital on Monday.

By CARY DAVIS

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 18, 2000

TAMPA -- For fans keeping score at home: Make it three down and two to go.

Weighing in at a healthy 4 pounds 2 ounces, Cody Somoano was released Monday afternoon from Tampa General Hospital to join brothers Evan and Dante at the family's home in Wesley Chapel.

The final two members of the Somoano quintuplets, Brianna and Alyssa, are both healthy and growing and are expected to be home in the next few weeks.

"I'm starting to get a small picture of what my big picture is going to look like," Kathy Somoano, mother of the quintuplets, said by telephone after arriving home. "I can't wait to get my girls home now."

Like his brothers, Cody was dressed in a blue baby suit and matching hat for his moment in the spotlight. With television cameras circling around them, Kathy Somoano and her husband, Jack, lowered Cody into a rental van, strapped him in a baby seat and headed for the family's four-bedroom house in the Lakes of Northwood subdivision.

There were signs that the first-time parents are feeling more comfortable with the enormous task that lies ahead. A little over two weeks ago, when Dante and Evan went home, the Somoanos struggled for 15 minutes at the hospital entrance figuring out how a baby's car seat works.

Monday, they handled the task like a couple of old pros.

"We're getting some experience under our belt," Jack Somoano said.

The Somoano quintuplets, the first ever born at Tampa General, were delivered by Caesarian section April 25. Tiny and fragile at birth -- Alyssa weighed just 1 pound 2 ounces -- all have made great strides.

Alyssa, at 3 pounds, still is the smallest. She's expected to be home in early August. Brianna, who nearly died from a staph infection in May, now weighs more than 4 pounds and should be home in the next 10 days, her parents said.

Dante and Evan are adjusting well to life at home, their parents said, and are developing into big eaters. Both weigh more than 5 pounds.

"They're definitely tearing up the food," their father said.

And they are leaving a pile of dirty diapers in their wake. Together, Evan and Dante go through about 20 diapers per day. If the average holds for all five, the Somoanos will need a daily supply of about 50 diapers. Their diaper budget alone is expected to be about $4,500 annually.

To that end, employees at Tampa General are organizing a diaper drive, and the hospital is inviting the public to help.

The congregation at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in New Tampa, where the Somoanos are members, have established a support group for the family. Three times a week, the group delivers food to the weary parents.

After sleeping all the way home Monday, Cody seemed happy to be reunited with his brothers, his father said. The Somoanos placed their three sons on a pillow together and captured the moment with a camera.

Later, identical twins Cody and Evan were getting reacquainted in the same crib.

"I'm sure they'll get used to each other soon enough," their father said.

A little apprehensive about parenthood when they first brought Evan and Dante home, the Somoanos say they are adjusting nicely to their new lives.

"We're more relaxed and we're not really nervous anymore," Jack Somoano said. "We have a little routine down pat."

Then, pausing, he added: "Now we have to fit Cody into our schedule. Just when we thought we had a handle on things, here come the other ones."

- Staff photographer Stefanie Boyar contributed to this report.

Anyone interested in donating diapers to the family can leave them at the main entrance to Tampa General Hospital during normal business hours. For information, call (813) 253-4440. Donations can be mailed to the family at Internet Xtreme Inc., care of Jack Somoano, 5450 County Road 581 No. 150, Wesley Chapel, FL 33543-9242, or call Jack Somoano at (813) 417-1041 or e-mail them at 5miracles.com

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