A message from Alaya's mother: Welcome to our beautiful life. Alaya’s due date was September 10, 2018. At 30 weeks gestation, out of nowhere I went into labor. Alaya showed signs of distress so they decided I needed a c-section. Alaya was born July 4th 2018 at 12:15 pm. Weighing in at 3lbs 7 oz, 15 1/2 inches long. Alaya Natalie Wright, a true firecracker. Alaya was born having uncontrollable seizures, a collapsed lung, grade 4 bilateral brain bleed , hydronephrosis, and many other complications. Alaya was intubated for the first month of her life. I did not get to hold my daughter for many, many days. From her bedside, I watched her fight for her life. July 10th, 2018 I had her baptized and was told the chances of me bringing Alaya home were unlikely. Alaya was still seizing uncontrollably all while being on 4 different seizure medications. We spent 11 weeks in that NICU, there were many hard & heart wrenching days. With each day we made small steps towards improvement. Some days we’d take what felt like a million steps back. On August 3rd, 2018 we had a family meeting with the many teams of doctors responsible for Alaya’s care. We were told things about her future and what they felt her quality of life would be. I choose to always stay positive. I never give life to the negative things said about Alaya or her future. September 7th, 2018 Alaya had a shunt placed in her brain due to results from a routine MRI performed before she could be discharged. The MRI showed fluid building up in her spine. I decided not to delay, & consent to have the shunt placed in Alaya’s brain right away. There was no time to waste. There were too many risks if we didn’t do it. Three days later on September 10th, 2018 (Alayas due date) I took my beautiful miracle home. In one year Alaya has had 12 brain surgeries. We spent her first Christmas in the hospital due to her shunt malfunctioning. In March 2019 Alaya coded due to another malfunction. Since September 12, 2019 we have been in the hospital. Alaya was in distress and we thought it was her shunt malfunctioning. Alaya had 5 brain surgeries within 3 weeks. I decided we hit a wall with her care at the hospital we were staying at and I transferred her to Cohens Children Hospital. While being at Cohens we gained some new diagnoses that required surgical intervention. Alaya has had two major surgeries within two weeks of each other. Alaya hasn’t woken up since the most recent surgery and has been intubated since. The future is so unknown, but positivity is key! I never put stock into the negative things said about my daughter. Alaya has proved many people wrong and she will continue to do so. I am not naïve. I don’t live in a fairytale world, however I have faith in my child. I have seen her strength & the fight within her. My daughter is a miracle. Our future is unknown. We fight everyday to make our future our own, without limitations set by doctors that aren’t always right. This our journey through life and we are happy to share it with you. Please help support baby Alaya through her battle with prematurity, hydrocephalus, syringomyelia, and arachnoiditis. Thank you for your generous donations. (Antoinette Hogan is the grandmother of Alaya and the beneficiary of this fundraiser and will be withdrawing the funds for Alaya)