A mom’s Christmas prayers and wishes came true after her now 17-month-old child got to go home just in time to wake up on Christmas morning with her siblings.
In March 2018, Lani Daniel was born at 24 weeks gestation at Sydney Children’s Hospital in Randwick. According to the Daily Mail, she weighed just 24.48 ounces at birth and was diagnosed with chronic lung disease and a bowel obstruction.
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Lani’s mom, Emma Hutchinson, prayed constantly for her little girl, hoping that despite the challenges each day brought, she would remain the little fighter she has been since birth.
And every day, for 17 months, Lani fought from inside the hospital. Now, she’s finally home with her older siblings and just in time to spend her second Christmas morning with them.
Premie Baby Goes Home 17 Months After Birth to Celebrate Christmas
Lani now weighs 23.37 pounds, thriving, and is now her family’s little Christmas miracle. Hutchinson told the Daily Mail, “There have been so many times we thought it would never happen. Lani was meant to come home for Christmas last year but she ended up getting sick and spent the next year in hospital.”
The grateful mom continued saying that Lani first got to go home in October of this year. However, when she got sick again, they took her back to the hospital. “She will be home this time for Christmas which will be very special because it is her first one home.”
And Lani’s brother, 4-year-old Hayden, and sister, 6-year-old Layla couldn’t be more excited to have their little sister home. “All the kids are excited to all be together for once.”
Hutchinson added, “Her brother and sister are over the moon. In the morning, they love to go into her room and turn the ventilator machine off. I’m just looking forward to Christmas morning when they all wake up together in the same place. It is a madhouse most of the time but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Now, Lani will continue to have regular doctor’s appointments and her physicians expect her lungs, which were underdeveloped at birth, to continue to get stronger and stronger each day.
Lani then thanked her medical team, including Lani’s nurses, for caring for her daughter every day for the last 17 months. She told The Sydney Morning Herald that her daughter was a “fan favorite.” “They’ve had such a big impact in her life and with me.”