Please enjoy Preemie Prints' families inspirational story & photos. Consider supporting our
mission to share hope with families who have a baby born prematurely or
critically ill. Preemie Prints support programs include NICU
photography and NICU graduate photography (the gift of photography at no
charge for a NICU family), the gift of handmade items, group events and
meetings, information, and prayer support. Our mission is to connect
parents and let them know they are not alone. We thank our supporters, Preemie Prints volunteers, and donors for allowing us to continue touching the lives of NICU, preemie, and angel families.
We pray these special memories from Preemie Prints
will help families remember how strong
they were in overcoming their NICU journey together.
A NICU STORY | THOUGHTS FROM MOM
"I had our twins early at 30 weeks 5 days due to preeclampsia. Emery had also been diagnosed with IUGR ( intrauterine growth restriction) at week 22 and I was put on bed rest. Emery only weighed 1 lb 12 oz at birth and Dylan weighed 3 lb 8 oz.
We had been so concerned about how Emery would do if they were born early because she was so small, but she entered the world a fighter. She was breathing on her own within a few days. They say that girls develop sooner than boys in the womb and that IUGR babies are "stressed" in the womb so that causes their lungs to develop sooner too.
Dylan had to be on a ventilator right away to help him breathe and then CPAP and finally just a nasal cannula as you can see in these photos. Dylan also had a serious infection in his blood and lungs which was a set back but he fought through that.
These photos were taken when they were 4.5 weeks old and Dylan weighed 5 lb 4 oz and Emery weighed 3 lb 6 oz. It is currently one week later and Dylan is completely off of oxygen and they are working on bottle and breast feeding. The doctors say we should be able to take them home in 1-2 weeks!
The NICU journey is hard plain and simple. The wires and tubes and beeps from the monitors are so overwhelming at first, but gradually you learn what they are for and how they are helping your babies and you get used to them. And there are days of joy and amazement and other days of sadness, anger and guilt. But our babies wouldn't be here if it weren't for the NICU and we are so blessed that they have had that care.
Preemie Prints Volunteer Photographer:
Teresa Coleman - Plano, TX
A note from Teresa:
"Emery and Dylan were perfect. Emery was so small yet so alert and quiet. Dylan was the bigger of the two and he was so sleepy yet showed off his set of lungs. Mom and Dad were great as they did their normal routine with the babies and pretended I was not there - which made my job easier. I was able to capture images of them focused on their babies and not the camera. I was ecstatic to hear how much they weighed at birth and how much they weighed as of the day we did the photo session. I cannot wait to see these two sweet babies grow to be strong willed and strong minded. They will be the generation that changes this world into a much better place!"
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