I was born on June 11, 1999 at 10:54 Am. My mom was induced one week early because her doctors told her I was measuring "small for dates" and maybe there was a reason I wasn't growing too well inside her. It took me 3 days, but I arrived without any complications and even scored a 9.9 on my apgar. I weighed 5lbs and 5 1/2 ounces and was 17 1/4 inches long. My dad and my godmother, Auntie Lesa, were at my mom's side when I finally made an appearance. Everyone was so happy and surprised when they said, "It's a Girl!"

Mom and Dad had two days of pure blissfulness and enjoyment, but on the third day when I was supposed to go home, they were told there was concern over the size of my head. It was only measuring 29 centimeters and this was very abnormal. They wanted to run several tests to find out why my head was so small. This was very scary for my parents and they immediately told the rest of my family and everyone surrounded my parents for support.

After numerous blood tests, x-rays, MRI's, ultrasounds and physical exams, I was finally diagnosed with Microcephalic Pachygyria. Basically, my brain stopped growing when I was 29 weeks. Also, the folds of my brain are very large, when they are supposed to be small and rigid. The prognosis that was given was very poor and my parents were told to expect the worse. The doctors told my parents I would only live a few days and if by some miracle I survived longer, I would have severe developmental delays including mental retardation, feeding difficulties, vision loss and much more.

When my family found out what had happened, the support started to surround us like wildfire. My Grammy and Grampa traveled hundreds of miles to be at our side, my Nana and Grandad rushed to the hospital and my aunts and uncles left their jobs and came to show how much they loved me and my mom and dad. The support was overwhelming. We also received numerous letters of support, encouragement and prayers. My Grammy came to live with us and helped my mom and dad out so they could adjust to having a baby with special needs. Everyone in our family joined together to make sure I was taken care of and my parents had the support they needed to learn how to handle this very difficult situation.

During my first 3 months of life, I had a very hard time eating. I had very severe reflux and this made me not want to eat. I stopped taking the bottle and decided it was too difficult for me to eat and I needed some help. My mom and dad immediately took me to a specialist and a feeding tube was inserted and I was put on medicine to help with the reflux. After I started getting my nutrition from the tube, my weight took of like a rocket, and it hasn't stopped climbing since!! I've gained weight every month and I began to have more energy. I stopped crying and started smiling and enjoying life. That's what I continue to do every day. My feedings are given via a feeding machine that pumps formula into my tube. Most of my nutrition is administered at nighttime while I sleep, then I have a little time off the pump during the day to enjoy some activities.

When I was four months old, I started having seizures. This was very scary for everyone. I was immediately put on Phenobarbital and Topomax and that is what I get every day. These drugs help reduce the number of seizures and luckily they don't make me too sleepy and I get to enjoy all the stimulation and play time that my parents do daily. The seizures sometimes go away for a few days, and then they start to come back slowly. When this happens, my mom calls the neurologist and they increase my medicine. I really hope one day I will be seizure free!!

Another challenge I face is Cortical Visual Impairment. Basically, my eyes see things, but the message is not transmitted to my brain. Therefore, I'm not sure exactly what I'm seeing. The doctor says I see shadows, but I see more than that. I see bright lights, black and white figures, and I see everyone's smile when they hold me and look at me. Once a month I receive therapy from the NJ Commission for the Blind to help stimulate my vision. Then my mom and dad work with me every day and we have lots of great toys that help to improve my vision.

I also enjoy Occupational and Speech Therapy 2 hours a week. Kim comes to play with me and she helps to exercise my legs and arms because I have very high tone due to the mixed messages my brain sends to my muscles. Sometimes I get stiff and Kim helps me to relax and try to learn things like rolling over and sitting up. I try very hard to do all of these things and one day, you never know!!

My speech therapy helps me to improve my motor skills. This way I can improve my swallowing function and hopefully I won't get pneumonia. I had that once and it wasn't fun. As a precaution, I am on constant antibiotics to help fight any infections that are trying to invade my lungs. I also use oxygen at night while I sleep and this helps me to maintain a healthy oxygen level. Along with this, my parents do Nebulizer treatments two times a day to keep my airway relaxed and this helps with my breathing.

Overall, my main job in life is to smile and enjoy every person I come in contact with. Everyone who meets me tells me how adorable I am, and I agree and smile back at them. I will be celebrating my third birthday in June and I'm doing well overall. I love all my aunts and uncles, my grandparents, my cousins and my many friends. I know they love me and I know how much their love and support means to my mom and dad. We are all so blessed to have such a loving family. It's because of all this love and support that I'm doing so well. I thrive on it and it helps me to be the little fighter that I am and will continue to be. I will be updating my Web site from time to time, so stop by and check up on us!