This is the touching moment one of the smallest babies ever born in the UK to sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇ has her first ever cuddle with her dad. Tiny Macey Micklethwaite, from Worcester, was barely bigger than her dad’s hand when she was born weighing just 551g. She was born at 25 weeks – just seven days over the ᴄᴜᴛ ᴏFF point for ᴀʙᴏʀᴛɪᴏɴ in the UK – but ᴀɢᴀɪɴsᴛ the Oᴅᴅs, managed to sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇ. What makes her sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴀʟ even more miraculous is that her dad Rhys, had been in a ʜᴏʀʀɪFɪᴄ ᴍᴏᴛᴏʀʙɪᴋᴇ ᴄʀᴀsʜ just weeks before – and had ᴄʜᴇᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ by a second.
So when mum Karen Dawkins, 33, discovered she was 18 weeks Pʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴛ, the couple were thrilled. But just over a month later, Karen went into ᴘʀᴇᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ labour – and ᴍᴇᴅɪᴄs ᴡᴀʀɴᴇᴅ the couple it was unlikely their new daughter would sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇ.
‘When she was born she was the size of my hand. I look back at photos and think how un-baby-like she looks, but at the time I thought ”wow, what a baby. She ʙᴀᴛᴛʟᴇᴅ through so much. I feel so lucky to have her and that time was my birthday the day after I had her, and the birth was a ᴊᴏʏᴏᴜs ᴏᴄᴄᴀsɪᴏɴ. I would say it was the best day of my life”. Mom said
She was five month’s old before she was finally allowed to go home. Now eight-months-old, she weighs 8.5lbs – just over the average weight of a full-term newborn. She is just a normal baby. She is small but catching others up. Health and development ᴡɪsᴇ sʜᴇ ɪs ᴏɴ ᴛʀᴀᴄᴋ. ‘It’s amazing how much she has ʙᴀᴛᴛʟᴇᴅ through.’
