Today we celebrate the first birthday of 2 incredibly determined, strong little girls. A true pair of fighters who overcame incredible odds to be here. Looking at them, you wouldn't know they were any different from any other 1 year old in the world. They chat away in their baby language, crawl lightning fast, and have started climbing on things and standing next to the furniture. They have rosy cheeks and sunny personalities – and charm everyone they meet.
Their story is well known. You only have to read the previous blog posts I've made to understand what kind of difficulties and problems we encountered during pregnancy and birth. But today isn't about remembering the bad – it's about celebrating what we have achieved in 12 months.
Today we celebrate them overcoming the serious problems they were born with. We're celebrating health and happiness, which came through rivers of tears. We're celebrating life, which came through several brushes with death. We're celebrating them – because they are the strongest people I know.
If you had have told me a year ago that my girls would be the poster children for the condition they were born with – anonymously famous through journals, websites and researchers – I would never have believed you. If you had have told me a year ago that I would have spoken to renowned doctors and specialists about my experiences in a symposium – I would probably have laughed at you.
So today, we celebrate. It might be cold and wet and windy outside – but there's plenty of sunshine and warmth here.