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My daughter Colette was born January 20, 2016 at 39 weeks, full-term. Ultrasounds went well and as far as we knew, she was healthy, so we had never even considered a NICU stay.

To our shock, Colette started having trouble breathing shortly after she was born due to meconium aspiration. The doctor was calm as he told us they were going to wheel her right down the hall to the nursery to check her out. She never came back to us in our room in the maternity ward – instead, she was in the NICU fighting for her life.

It was 2 whole days before nurses would allow us to hold Colette - it felt like 2 years as we watched her tiny body hooked to machines and tubes, struggling to breathe. She would remain in the NICU at Jefferson Abington Hospital for 2 weeks, and an additional 10 days in the PICU as a step-down unit.

Today, Letty is the best big sister to her 3 little siblings. She loves school, loves to dance and sing, and is a daily inspiration to us as we remember just how hard she had to fight in the very beginning. It took awhile for us to realize that the NICU stay was a gift – a reminder to never take things for granted. We are so excited to see all that Letty accomplishes in the future!