Miracle baby reaches birthday
Published: August 23, 2005
Although her birth certificate has her listed as Cora Rose Leone, friends and family of the 1-year-old girl simply refer to her as a “miracle.”
Born four months premature at a weight of just under a pound, Cora arrived at Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital on Monday with her mother, Shawnda Leone, to celebrate her first birthday and show appreciation to the hospital’s doctors and nurses.
Wearing a tiny pink bow in her small crop of hair and a matching pink dress, Cora took turns being cradled and coddled by those in attendance, while her mother gushed about her little girl’s progress.
“She can’t quite walk yet, but she is able to scoot herself around and do that combat crawl thing,’ said Leone of Riverside. “And she can say basic words like ‘mama’ and ‘dada.’ It is just amazing.’
The day’s festivities were somewhat bittersweet for Leone, she admitted, referring to Cora’s twin brother, Dominic, who passed away two months after his birth.
“It’s a day to rejoice, a day to be happy,’ she said. “But it’s also a tough day for me.’
Cora was born weighing 14.5 ounces, with a visibly beating heart. She spent the first four months of her life in the hospital, developing much the same way she would have had she not been premature.
Dr. Elmar Sakala, the family’s obstetrician, said he has yet to see a baby born that early and be as physically and mentally capable as Leone’s now 12-pound, 8-ounce ball of joy.
“It has been touch-and-go since the beginning, but Cora has definitely exceeded all expectations,’ Sakala said. “She is really, truly a miracle baby.’
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