The One Pound Wonders came into this world 16 weeks early weighing a mere 1 lb 2 oz (Camdyn) and 1 lb 8 oz (Cade). From the first day of life, they had to valiantly fight off all the evil NICU villains, those malicious micro-preemie harmers: IVH, PDA, ROP, CLD, and the gang.
After 133 days of continuous fighting, they left the NICU battlefield. The One Pound Wonders encountered still more battles. They spent over a year fighting off the evil Feeding Fiend who caused them both to deal with major feeding issues. Cade used his magic g-tube portal to gain superhero strength to eventually conquer this evil enemy. Camdyn, although tiny, showed her fierce superhero powers to overcome this enemy on her own.
The One Pound Wonders continue to gain strength and power in their superhero training camps, aka occupational, physical, and speech therapy weekly. They have left the world in awe of their amazing powers — the power to eat, breathe, walk, talk, and most importantly, live after being given only a 30-40% chance of surviving! The One Pound Wonders have proven to the world that miracles exist.
For the past two years, I have been honored to judge the Hand to Hold Preemie Power Essay Contest, which asks parents of premature babies to write about why their children are special. The essays all are incredible, so choosing a winner is an impossible task: each and every one of those children, and especially their parents, deserves to be honored for their strength and tenacity. We wanted to share the their stories with you, so we have included excerpts from each of this year’s winning essays below. You can read the essays in their entirety on our website or on Hand to Hold’s website (www.HandToHold.org). Finally, we want to give a shout-out to Hand to Hold: this local nonprofit offers a wealth of information and support for parents of premature babies — if you or someone you know is the parent of a preemie, we encourage you to get in touch with the folks at Hand to Hold. They really are wonderful!
—Kim Pleticha, Editor
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