I am the mother of 24 week twin miracles, Charlee, 1 lb., 1 oz. and Lennix, 1 lb., 6 oz. At just 2-1/2 years old they’ve endured more than 30 surgeries, a 226-day NICU stay, countless PICU stays, cerebral palsy, epilepsy and so much more.

Next month we will be celebrating 2 years of being home from the NICU as a family of 4! As we approach this milestone, we’ve compiled highlights from the 8,000,000 pictures and videos we have taken in the past 2 1/2 years into the video below.

With November being Prematurity Awareness Month my goal in sharing our story is to reassure parents that even when you feel like your world is crashing in around you to never give up hope! I hope to also bring more light to prematurity awareness month. It is not talked about as much as other life threatening awareness months, but at 25%, premature birth is the number one cause for neonatal mortality.

More on Charlee and Lennix

• NICU Graduate Spotlight: 2013 graduates Charlee and Lennix
• After spending 200 days in NICU, 24-week preemies are healthy toddlers