This mama in Texas was just reunited with her quadruplets after 8 days apart

Having your baby (or babies) in the NICU is absolutely heart-wrenching for new parents. But not being able to travel to the hospital for visits? Well, that’s unimaginably difficult. Unfortunately, Starlyn and Bill Cafferata know exactly what it feels like.

The Cafferatas, who are based in Austin, welcomed quadruplets in January. According to a report from TODAY, Starlyn and Bill felt prepared for the Texas storms due to their New Jersey upbringings (snowy weather is nothing new to this couple!)—but it soon became clear that the Texas storm rendered the roads too dangerous to drive.

Since the Cafferata quadruplets were in a hospital 40 miles away from their parents’ home, the couple went eight terribly long days without seeing their children.

“It was absolutely brutal, that feeling that you can’t get to your kids,” said Starlyn according toTODAY. “The nurses and staff were incredible, FaceTiming us and calling. But not being able to hold them was brutal.”

The mama was finally reunited with her babies—and a clip of the reunion has gone viral on TikTok. The video shows Starlyn driving to the hospital, walking through the hallways and (finally!) taking her babies, Lennon, Stella, Francesca and Enzo, into her arms.

Starlyn reportedly brought 300 ounces of pumped breast milk with her and was shocked by how much her babies had grown in just eight days. “They looked so different — they were bigger,” Starlyn said. “It was super emotional for me.” Two of the couple’s children, Lennon and Francesca, have been discharged from the NICU and are home with their big sister.

People are loving this sweet video of the mama and her babies reunited—and for good reason! Being a NICU parent is something many of us can relate to, and even if we have not been in this family’s exact situation, we can feel this mama’s joy come through the screen when she sees her babies after what had to have been an agonizing stretch of time without them.

“That must have felt like an eternity! So glad you could see them,” one user commented. The Cafferatas’ reply? “It felt like years”.