Mirrah, Mirrah... You're Our Little Miracle!

Cancer didnt stop Jo-Leas family dream.

The simple pleasure of holding her smiley, dark-haired baby girl Mirrah to her chest is a gift Jo-Lea Lawley scarcely dared to believe would ever happen.

“This baby is a miracle and she’s all ours,” says Jo-Lea, 22, kissing the top of her daughter’s head and smiling across at her partner Rhys Dahm, 24.

For the young Wellington couple, first-time parenthood has been sheer joy, but it follows a long and harrowing journey involving cancer, a high-risk pregnancy, and the dramatic birth of wee Mirrah at just 31 weeks and six days gestation.

Her name, pronounced “mirror”, is a hybrid of “miracle” and “mirror” because her parents say she’s a reflection of both of them.

“Mirrah’s birth has brought up emotions I didn’t even know existed,” shares Rhys. “It’s incredible to meet your baby for the first time, but we also feared more than once we were going to lose her.”

Although Mirrah arrived into the world fighting for her life and weighing a fragile 1567g, six months on, the engaging girl has outgrown her premature baby clothes and now weighs more than five kilos.

“We are literally obsessed with this little girl,” smiles Jo-Lea as she runs a finger across her daughter’s cheek. “Life is incredible and we feel so blessed.”

Crippling pain