School girl's courage A NEW LEG FOR LYDIA

The desperate Auckland mum chose pioneering surgery in Florida to save her miracle girl

-  Leena Tailor

Mum Lauren is thrilled to see the positive changes in Lydia.

I can run as fast as my friends - I'm not last anymore!" exclaims five-year-old Lydia Golding to her mum Lauren. Born with a rare deformity that limits the growth of her right leg, it's simple achievements like climbing into her car-seat or sitting cross-legged that mark monumental milestones for the young Kiwi.

It's also these moments that remind Lauren, 43, why she relocated to the US in the middle of the pandemic to put Lydia through months of grueling treatment, which often saw the brave girl "screaming blue murder".

The shift to Florida cost the family $500,000 and saw them separated for almost a year, with husband Hamish having to work in Auckland, while Lauren cared for Lydia and her three-year-old sister Rose.

Fortunately, the Goldings are now back together in Aotearoa, but Lydia still faces further operations and will be at least 13 by the time her bone-lengthening procedures are completed. However, the bubbly youngster remains full of positivity. When Woman's Day asks about her dream job, she responds, "A doctor fixing arms and legs!"

Doing whatever it takes to give Lydia a normal life is paramount to Lydia and Hamish, given the "rollercoaster" they went through to become parents. Lauren endured a miscarriage, two ectopic pregnancies and four rounds of IVF (the third saw her hospitalized with cardiac arrest) before welcoming "miracle baby" Lydia.

Although a 20-week scan showed one thighbone was abnormally short, Lydia wasn't diagnosed with proximal femoral focal deficiency until an MRI at six weeks old, which also revealed issues with her femoral head and hip.