Baby Finn Hill’s life is a miracle for more reasons than one.
When his Florida parents, Jessica and Christopher Hill, were unable to conceive on their own, they turned to a new, life-affirming way to grow their family – embryo adoption, Bay News 9 reports.
Then, in May, Jessica went into premature labor and gave birth to him after just 24 weeks of pregnancy. Finn weighed 1 pound, 2 ounces, and his feet were barely bigger than a penny, according to ABC Action News.
But this month, after overcoming numerous health problems, the little baby boy finally grew well enough to go home.
“When his entire hand fits around your fingernail, it makes you realize just how precious life is,” his mother said.
The Hills, who live in Polk County, Florida, said they struggled with infertility issues for about 10 years before they adopted Finn. The couple went through an embryo adoption program, sometimes called snowflake adoption, which allows families to make adoption plans for embryos left over from in vitro fertilization.
Jessica Hill said she miscarried one embryo, but Finn survived, according to the report.
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The pregnancy was traumatic. Hill said she began to experience complications, including a blood clot, and eventually went into premature labor. On May 21, she delivered a tiny but living Finn, the report continues.
“That thing that you’ve been praying for… trying for and asking for… finally happened and then you say well, it’s not over yet because he’s premature and we don’t even know if he’s going to make it,” her husband said, remembering that difficult time.
The family said they relied on their faith. They also asked for prayers and urged people to follow their journey on their Facebook page “Fighting Finn.”
Finn spent 113 days in the hospital, primarily in the NICU at Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando, battling various health issues, the family said on their Go Fund Me page.
“You just hold your breath, every day you hold your breath,” his mother said. “We’re extremely blessed he survived.”
Earlier this month, Finn’s doctors finally gave the ok for him to go home. His parents said he now weighs about 5 pounds, 7 ounces, and he still uses oxygen; but they are hopeful for his future.
“We cannot thank the staff at Nemours enough for caring for our boy for a long 3 months. The staff is top notch!” the Hills wrote on Facebook. “The Lord truly heard our cry and healed our boy! Praise God for Finn’s life! He truly has mighty plans for him.”
Modern medical advances are enabling younger and smaller premature babies to survive and thrive. The smallest recorded surviving baby weighed less than 9 ounces at birth. Born in California in December 2018, baby Saybie was deemed well enough to go home in May.
The earliest known premature baby to survive outside the womb was born at 21 weeks and four days of pregnancy. In 2017, the journal Pediatrics highlighted the girl’s survival story.
