DANVILLE — Like celebrities, the five guests of honors made a brief appearance before their adoring fans, and then disappeared into a back room.

“Everyone would love to hold these babies,” mom Jenny Ferrill told the crowd of about 60 people attending a pre-birthday party. “We’ll give them all hugs and kisses for you.”

Later, the quintuplets reappeared to blow out the single candle on each individual cake (with help from the adults), and to bask in the applause. Then, it was home to bed.

Sunday’s party was the last big event being filmed by The Learning Channel, which has followed Pete and Jenny Ferrill for more than a year. The four-part series starts next week.

Although the babies won’t turn 1 year old until Dec. 21, the Ferrills invited family and friends to a pre-birthday bash so the station could film the festivities.

The banquet room at Turtle Run was festive with fresh flowers, balloons, gifts, cakes and teddy bears, which were given by the newborn intensive care staff at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

The children need to limit their exposure to crowds for another six months because they are susceptible to respiratory illnesses.

The Ferrills thanked everyone who has helped in any way in the past year, and noted how grateful they are for people’s support and the babies’ health.

“Every day I wake up is such a blessing to see the smiles on their faces,” Jenny said. “Seeing them reminds me of how far we’ve come.”

The Ferrills, who have had two unsuccessful pregnancies, took fertility treatments and were surprised to learn Jenny was carrying five babies. However, the next several months were stressful, as they worried about the babies’ odds of survival and Jenny’s health, as the pregnancy strained her heart and body.

The babies — Irelyn, Landyn, Layne, Keiran and Drayden — were delivered two months’ premature.

“We thank the Lord and savior who granted us these precious lives — something we wanted all our lives,” Pete said. “Miracles change people’s lives. They’ve touched and changed our lives and a lot of people’s lives.”

Not only are the babies celebrating their first year, but, Jenny said, “I’m celebrating being a mom because it’s something I never thought would happen.”

Pete added the event is a milestone for the couple, as they have evolved as parents.

“I knew I married a spectacular woman years ago,” he said, “but to see her fill and fulfill this motherhood role is really awesome.”

He also thanked all the people who took third-shift duty to tend to the babies so he and Jenny could get some rest.

In a letter of thanks distributed to the guests, the couple wrote, “The quints are so fortunate to be blessed with such amazing individuals in their lives.”

In the letter, Jenny also reflected on her difficult pregnancy and the strength of five fragile beings who made it safely into the loving arms of their parents. “Because of them, I found strength within me that I never before knew existed,” she wrote. “They became the everlasting light in my very difficult pregnancy.”

When the babies came out for cake, the guests sang “Happy Birthday” and then wished each child a happy birthday. Although they were a bit fussy at first, the babies broke into grins when the crowd applauded.

Each little cake was decorated with the drawing of a dragonfly. Jenny explained the symbol. Two days after she found out she was pregnant, she and Pete went through a fast-food restaurant while waiting for the results. A dragonfly flew in through the moon roof and landed on Jenny, then the dashboard.

It was the most beautiful dragonfly they had ever seen.

She later learned the dragonfly was the same color — blue topaz — as the babies’ December birthstone.

On the air

-- The Learning Channel will air the four-part “Quint-Essential” at 9 p.m. Central time on Nov. 26, and Dec. 3, 10 and 17. The series follows Jenny and Pete Ferrill from the pregnancy to the birth, and the babies’ first birthday.

-- The family’s Web site is http://www.ferrillfive.com