HGTV’s Jenny Marrs Shares Her Twin Sons’ Difficult Birth Story

Ahead of Mother’s Day, Jenny Marrs reflected on the difficult beginning of her motherhood journey.

“On April 29, 2010, I went to my doctor because I was having dull stomach pain. Within the hour, I was admitted to the hospital and moved to the L&D unit,” she began a lengthy Instagram post on Friday, May 8. “After nine hours, the attending doctor decided I needed to be transferred by helicopter to UAMS in Little Rock in order to deliver my too-early-to-be-born twins at a hospital with the capabilities to care for them. The flight would save us four hours of travel time.”

Jenny said she felt “hazy” hearing about the risks associated with giving birth to her premature twin sons. “As [the neonatologist] spoke, I felt an overwhelming sense of peace, and the words, ‘They will be okay,’ resonated in my spirit,” she wrote. “I didn’t hear them aloud, but I have never been more confident of the voice of God.”

Jenny recalled thanking God as she lay in bed “unable to move.” At noon that day, Jenny said she prayed as she “received the second dose of steroids for the boys’ lung development.” She wrote, “I prayed that they would defy every odd we were given. I prayed that they would shout and jump and tumble like little boys do. I prayed that they would one day run around a track and play in a soccer game.”

According to Jenny, her sons Nathan and Ben arrived “43,200 minutes later.” The twins are the eldest of Jenny and her husband Dave Marrs‘ five children, including daughters Sylvie and Charlotte and son Luke.

 

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“They were so small they could fit in the palm of Dave’s hand. Ben was so bruised. There were so many wires and tubes,” she shared. “They were here, but this wasn’t right. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. They were supposed to be in my arms.”

Jenny said she and Dave “fought so hard” to help their boys get healthy enough to come home. “Now, all these years later, I can’t begin to count the thousands of weekends and evenings we have spent around a soccer field cheering them on,” she gushed. “They just learned that their varsity team will be headed to the state championship next week. I am so proud of their hard work and dedication.”

On Sunday, May 10, Jenny shared a glimpse into her family’s chill Mother’s Day at home on their Arkansas farm via Instagram. The holiday was a bittersweet one for the family, as it was their first Mother’s Day since the deaths of Dave’s mother and Jenny’s grandmother last year.

“That’s the thing about life: when you’ve experienced great loss, you recognize how every ordinary moment is exceedingly beautiful,” Jenny wrote alongside footage of her family spending quality time together. “And motherhood? Well, when you spent years praying desperately for the exact days you’re currently living in, you recognize how exceedingly and abundantly blessed you are.”