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| Adorable: Walker Pruett was born severely premature on April 25, weighing just one pound and three ounces |
The
parents of a baby born at just 26 weeks have opened up about the ordeal
of having a premature baby after they were finally able to take their
tiny son home.
Erica and Jared Pruett's little boy, Walker,
weighed in at just over one pound when he was born around three months
ago.
His parents had to wait five days until they could hold him and
even then they only had 45 minutes each day with him.
click here for video
click here for video
But finally, after an 80-day journey in the neonatal intensive care unit at Forsyth Medical Center in Winston Salem, North Carolina, Walker is at home with his family, happy and thriving.
Pulling through: On day 5, Walker's parents were
able to hold him for the first time. He couldn't breathe on his own
Fast forward: By day 27, Walker has grown a
little and is looking healthier
'Walker got weighed, he is up to 6lbs. 1.4ozs,
which means he is over 5 times his birth weight a truly amazing gain!'
his mom wrote on her blog on
Friday.
Walker was one of a number of premature babies
at the hospital whose first fragile months of life were documented by
photographer Deneen Bryan.
Her company, Capturing Hopes Photography,
is a non-profit volunteer organization that takes free professional
photographs of premature babies in hospital.
'You feel
like you've done something really good for the world.'
Bryan's own
daughter died at just six months, which prompted her to set up the
charity.
The mother-of-six said often these families
are too distressed or unable to take photos of their own.
Walker's time-lapse video is part of a series called 'Project 100 Days'.
Walker's time-lapse video is part of a series called 'Project 100 Days'.
The project aims to show a preemie's growth
in the first 100 days of its life at the hospital.
For Erica and
Jared Pruett, it was a dream come true.
Resilient: By day 54, Walker was much stronger
and very alert
New life: On day 74, Walker weighed four pounds
Healthy: Eighty days after birth, Walker was
healthy enough to go home
Bryan's beautiful photos show Walker from the
moment he was born and put on a ventilator, to day 80 when he was
healthy enough to be discharged from hospital.
'(Walker) was
just so, so tiny. You couldn’t touch him. You couldn’t rub him. You
just had to pat his skin, because his skin was so fragile. ... It was
five days before we could hold him,' Erica told Martinsville
Bulletin.
'(Bryan) was excellent to us ... She came
every single day that he was in the NICU and took a picture of him.
After we left the NICU, she did a photoshoot with us. She gave us the
complete rights to all those pictures.'
Bryan, who
set up the charity last year, said she was inspired by a volunteer
photographer who provided her with free pictures of her daughter's
hospital stay.
Bryan's six-month-old daughter died at the
Mayo Clinic in Minnesota in 1998.
'After she
passed away, we got the photos in the mail,' Bryan told The Blaze.
'That’s when I really realized how important those photos were. That was
our only professional photo that we had of our family at the time.'
When the
little girl died, the Bryans moved to Ireland, returning to the US in
2008.
Bryan, a professional photographer, began
taking free photos for Ronald McDonald families and their children.
There were waiting lists for her popular service.
Doing well: Walker gets a cuddle from his mom
Erica
Kindhearted: Mother-of-six
Deneen Bryan has set up charity 'Capturing Hopes' and photographs
premature babies in hospital as a free gift for their parents
The
Mid West native began taking photos of preemies when she noticed that
they were an under served segment of patients.
'They didn’t
have anyone coming in. The baby was only one to two pounds and mom and
dad didn’t have any photos except cellphone shots,' Bryan said.
Bryan said
she and her volunteer photographers have learned how to work with
families to get good shots.
'The parents were dressed up, makeup and hair
done. It was giving the families something to look forward to every two
weeks,' she said.
'You have to say things like "Wow, he's got
really long fingers. I bet he's going to play basketball someday. Or
"Look at that hair; she's going to have beautiful hair."'
The
photographers are prepared for anything.
'A baby could
code right there while you’re there. … (You) have to be professional
but compassionate. They need you to be together,' Bryan said.
'I have had a
couple of volunteers where you could see a tear and they just kind of
turned to wipe it away. It really affects volunteers the first time
they’re in.'
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