Kids grow up fast, so it’s especially important to take a moment and recognize how far they’ve come!
Many parents place a special stuffed animal or toy next to their newborns as a way to measure their growth. This sounded like a great idea to Val and Rob Ray of Bend, Oregon. The only problem was finding a toy small enough to match their son Logan.
At just 21 weeks pregnant, Val learned she needed a cervical cerclage (or stitch) to keep the little one in her womb. When the procedure failed, she spent 20 days nearly upside down on strict bed rest, desperately trying to keep her unborn child safe in the hospital.
Unfortunately, all of her heroic efforts weren’t enough to finish out the pregnancy. Logan was born extremely early, weighing just 1.5 pounds, and was whisked off to the NICU for ventilation. The infant had a slew of problems, including two brain bleeds, two holes in his heart, an inguinal hernia, and a urinary tract infection. Their family had to fly to Portland to get him extra care.
“There was a real fear of losing him at that point,” Rob said. “We really thought he didn’t have much chance of pulling through.”
Still, when a nurse suggested they get a toy to measure Logan’s growth, Rob came back from the store with a 12-inch Superman action figure.
“He called me and said what about a Superman? I thought it was perfect!” Val explained. “He is a little superhero himself. Even when he was just a pound-and-a-half in weight, I called him my little ‘tough guy.'”
The family put the sanitized toy into the incubator with Logan, and day by day, he began to improve and grow stronger. After spending six months in the hospital, he was finally able to go home – and, of course, Superman went with him!
Logan has continued to beat the odds, so his parents came up with a perfect way to celebrate his success. Every year on his birthday, they take a picture of him with Superman, and the transformation has been wonderful!
Logan recently celebrated his 4th birthday! His parents are overjoyed by his progress and love having a visual reminder of how far he’s come.
“He’s just an incredible little boy,” Rob added. “A lot of these babies born at 23 weeks have tons of health problems, but Logan just didn’t, thank god. He’s a smart little kid, my little boy, he really is.”
What a fun way to celebrate their little superhero! We hope they keep this sweet tradition going forever.
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