LIMA, Ohio Rory Scott knows exactly what time today he, his brother, and three sisters will officially turn 12.
Kathleen at 7:19 p.m., Molly, Kirstan, and Rory in that order at 7:20 p.m., and William at 7:21 p.m.
The teeny-tiny quintuplets born to Mary and Roger Scott on Dec. 12, 1994, have grown into full-sized, high-energy, personality-packed sixth graders.
I couldn t imagine them getting to 4, their mother, Mary Scott, recalled as she watched the quints wrestle and squabble with each other after school yesterday.
The quintuplets, who were conceived by in-vitro fertilization, were born at Ohio State University Medical Center in Columbus 11 weeks premature. They ranged in weight from a fragile 1 pound, 15 ounces to 2 pounds, 9 ounces.
Rory, who his mother described as a nonstop talker, said he doesn t make too much of the fact that he was born on the same day as four of his siblings.
If you tell people you re a quintuplet, they ll say, You are? They say that because they don t know what that means, he ex-plained. Or sometimes they ll say, Oh my gosh. Now how many is that?
And does he like his unusual status?
Sometimes I like being a quint, but sometimes I wish I was older than them, Rory said with a glance at his siblings.
Kirstan, who is taller and looks, as her mother says, like the big sister, said she s glad to be a quintuplet because you always have someone to play with.
That comes in handy now that the Scotts who also have a 17-year-old son, Thomas have moved to a bigger home in Shawnee Township with a pond on 3.5 acres. Kathleen, who likes to have her own space, has her own room. Molly and Kirstan, who prefer having a roommate, share a room down the hall. William and Rory bunk together, while Thomas has his own room.
They said they miss their neighbors in their old neighborhood, but they have a lot more space inside and out and the pond has made for some nice birthday parties. For the last two years, the quints have celebrated their half-birthday on June 12, inviting five friends each over for a swim party.
Tonight, the family plans to have dinner at a local Mexican restaurant chosen especially because the kids will eat free, Mrs. Scott said with a laugh.
At 45, she seems to enjoy her sixth graders as much as she did her babies. While she s no longer changing diapers and fixing bottles times five, she said not a lot has changed in 12 years.
I think the stress is probably still the same, she said. They re bigger and they re fighting. They re still fighting for your attention too.
Maybe that s the difference in having five kids of different ages. They know where they stand. I think my kids are still trying to establish pecking order. Pay more attention to me! Pay more attention to me!
Right now, Kirstan and Kathleen are playing basketball. Molly plays indoor soccer on Saturdays, Rory on Fridays. Rory and William played soccer this summer, and Thomas, who just finished cross country, is now swimming.
Mrs. Scott said she knows she can t be everywhere at once, so she aims for fairness.
Thomas state cross-country meet was on the same day as the girls first basketball game, and we told them, He s a senior. This is the state meet, and we re going to go to that, Mrs. Scott said. I just have to make sure I m fair. If I go to one of Molly s games, I have to make sure I go to one of Rory s games.
While Thomas is now looking at colleges his mother said he wants to get far enough away to live on campus but close enough to come home when he wants to only one of the quintuplets was sure about what she wanted to do with her life.
I m going to be a doctor, Kirstan said without hesitation.
Rory said he could be a lawyer, though he would consider a career as a soccer player or runner.
Molly, William, and Kathleen said they didn t know yet.
I m not sure, Kathleen said. There s lots of stuff to do and I just don t know.
Contact Jennifer Feehan at: jfeehan@theblade.com or 419-353-5972.
First Published December 12, 2006, 3:36 p.m.
