Single And Unemployed 38-Year-Old Gave Birth To Quadruplets And Endured Harsh Criticism. 14 Years Later, Her Kids Are Doing Great!

October 2, 2018

What is it like to be a single mom of four?

In early 2003, Beth Goodman, a single 38-year-old woman with no steady income, thought “If not now, then when?” and went ahead with the IVF. She had tried IFVs before, but they didn’t work, so Beth decided to give it one last chance.

The woman was prepared to be a mom, but there’s was something she had never expected. When her doctor said she was expecting quadruplets, she was shell-shocked.

OWN / YouTube

In the interview she gave on The Oprah Show in 2004, the mom said:

I cried. Not happy, joyous tears but what-have-I-done and what-am-I-going-to-do kind of tears…I had no plans for quadruplets.

On November 11, 2003, Beth delivered four babies via an emergency C-section, two months before her due date. The babies were immediately placed in the NICU.

Much to Beth’s relief, all three boys and one girl pulled through. When the babies finally arrived home, the new mom realized there was a tough road ahead.

undefined OWN / YouTube

The new mom now had plenty of responsibilities, and the lack of support from her family and her community made things even harder. Beth and her quadruplets made the headlines, and many criticized her decision to give birth to all four babies as “selfish”. Bill O’Reilly of The O’Reilly Factor pulled no punches when he commented on the story:

Here’s a woman who’s 39 years old, obviously wants to have a child, okay – she’s unmarried. She doesn’t have the financial means to care for four babies, that’s for sure. So the taxpayers are going to have to pick it up. Why should I be paying for this woman’s children because she just wants to have them?

undefined OWN / YouTube

When Oprah asked the mom about the criticism, she gave a quite inspiring response:

I do believe I'm going to be able to pay all my bills. I am not the kind of person who would be happy in life just receiving charity and not pulling myself up by my own bootstraps…. And I'm so grateful to everyone who has been generous to us and there have been such kind people…but it's very uncomfortable to need. And I'm broken-hearted for those women who have to give their children away because of finances. I love my children and I believe I can find a way to make this work.

Things really worked out

Oprah caught up with the family in 2013. The quads were 10 years old at the time, and the family was doing great! Beth found a job as a real estate agent, and she was also working as an event planner.

Beth appeared on Oprah’s “Where Are They Now?” and people praised the mom. Here’s what some users wrote:

That is one good mother right there. Those babies are very lucky...

They are beautiful kids and look well-adjusted. They have a wonderful mother.

Well, she's an Event Planner and Real Estate Agent. NO one is footing the bill for her children. She's a working mom who's pulling her own weight and financially supporting herself and those children--like MANY single parents out there are.

those are some gorgeous children, wow.

Fast-forward to year 2018. The Goodmans are a happy family of five, and the kids already started high school.

Fourteen years ago, Beth said: “I love my children and I believe I can find a way to make this work.” And she was absolutely right – everything worked out. Way to go, mom!