Amazing Grace
Parents cradle baby for last time after life support is
switched off
but then she came back to life
but then she came back to life
By Daily Mail Reporte
June 20th 2009
They are holding her as tightly as they can because they know it will be for the very last time.
After deciding to turn their six-week-old daughter's life-support system off, Pete Vincent and Emily Ashurst cradled her in their arms and waited for her to slip quietly away.
But Grace had other ideas. The little girl given only a 1 per cent chance of survival after contracting meningitis suddenly started to breathe on her own.
Emily Ashurst holds her daughter Grace Vincent in her arms waiting for her to pass away
The last picture: After the life support machine was switched off, Grace was
expected to quietly die but survived against all odds
expected to quietly die but survived against all odds
To her parents' amazement and delight, she has surely and steadily continued her extraordinary recovery. Yesterday, she was well enough to leave hospital and go home.
Grace's father, a 26-year-old Royal Marine and member of 45 Commando who returned from Afghanistan in April, knows all about fighting spirit. And it seems his daughter does too.
'It was all doom and gloom and no one thought Grace had a chance,' he said.
'They just didn't want to get our hopes up but we are overjoyed with what happened.
'The fact she's recovered is incredible - she's obviously a real fighter. She's defied all the odds and proved everybody wrong.'
Goodbye my darling: Pete Vincent cradles his little girl
The day she was born: Grace with big sister Megan
Grace was taken to Newcastle General Hospital on May 16 after her parents noticed she was listless and struggling to breathe.
Tests showed she had late onset group B streptococcus meningitis, a condition which affects one in 1,000 babies and is contracted from the mother during childbirth.
After four days in intensive care, doctors told her devastated parents there was virtually no hope for Grace.
'The decision to turn off her life support machine was based on what the doctors were telling us,' Mr Vincent said.
'The scan results were very bad so we thought it would be best for her.
'We were told she would take a few last breaths. 'But she kept stopping breathing and starting again for the next six hours. Six months in Afghanistan was easy compared to that.'
Soon it was apparent that Grace had absolutely no intention of giving up.
In the weeks since that rollercoaster day on May 20, her heart rate, temperature and blood pressure have all returned to normal.
She has however, lost her sight although doctors are not yet sure whether this is permanent.
Grace's mother Emily, 26, works as a ward clerk at the hospital but now has a very clear patient's perspective as well.
As a newborn baby with her proud father Pete on the day
he came home from Afghanistan, and grandmother Leigh Brice
he came home from Afghanistan, and grandmother Leigh Brice
Pete Vincent and partner Emily Ashurst with their miracle daughter Grace
She said the family, including Grace's big sister Megan, six, are 'looking forward to the future'. 'We are over the moon,' she said at the family home in Holystone, Newcastle.
'We were told Grace had catastrophic brain damage and had no chance of living.
'But she managed it and we are really happy and looking forward to enjoying our future as a family. Every day she is making slow progress. She cried on Thursday for the first time in four weeks and to me that was the nicest sound in the world - it was amazing to hear her do that.
'None of the doctors know what the future will hold for Grace and we are still worried for her, but also hoping things will improve.'
Late onset meningitis, known as GBS, is present in a quarter of women of childbearing age and is passed on to one in every 1,000 babies during labour.
It is fatal for one in eight of those affected.
Hi There, I'm Rick Miller from Comprehensive Photography. I'm very pleased to see almost
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Some may remember posing for an "impromptu" photo opportunity during every family gathering. You stood there frozen, with cemented smiles as you wondered if Aunt Thelma would ever take the photograph. Cheese...... then Bam! You were blinded by the bright flash bulb. Auntie had the right idea. She wanted to memorialize every event. It didn't matter if the developed film never made it out of the card board envelopes. What was important is that she enjoyed taking photos.
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While some people still prefer film cameras, digital cameras now come in any size or budget. For the novice photographer who merely enjoys taking photographs as a way to relax or capture those one of a kind moments, suitable digital cameras are available for under $100. Some people are still using 1.3 mega pixel digital cameras. By today's standard, that is considered a dinosaur. However it would still work if the photographer just wanted to take an occasional photo to list items for sale on eBay. Today many amateur photographers are using digital cameras with 4-6 mega pixels. As a rule of thumb, the higher the mega pixel, the higher the price tag. Notwithstanding, higher mega pixel cameras also come with more bells and whistles and have a higher resolution. Most all digital cameras also have a timer and ability to make very small movie clips. Many also have zoom lens features.
With digital photography it is fun to play around with new technology. Create a screen saver of your best photo with Image Box from CoolUtils. If you came back from Hawaii and have lots of great photos that you want not to just show to your friends but amaze them - make an astonishing slideshow. Imagine all pictures will be shown one by one with different effects, accompanied by music and your comments. With ImageBox every photo stops being a snapshot but becomes a living part of the presentation. Your friends will be amazed! Don't think about how difficult it is – you will create your first slideshow in 6 minutes. There are software programs that allow you to make digital images look better than real life by removing unwanted blemishes, moles, or wrinkles. Experiment with the software to add or remove people or objects from the photo. New technology provides the ability to alter a photograph so that it looks like an oil painting, pencil sketch, negative, sepia, black and white, charcoal drawing and a plethora of other options.
While it is possible to make a living as a photographer, the majority of camera users simply take photos because they enjoy it. It's true that time will not stand still. The taunting school aged children had it right when they responded to stares, "Take a picture why don't you – it'll last longer!" Now you do the same - stop reading and go take a picture... it'll last longer! REGISTER
Thank all of you so much for helping me to do something I love and enjoy. Please REGISTER and tell me what you think of the site.
While you visit and navigate through my site, next to the home tab, there is now a BUY menu item, that will link you to my gallery of pictures for sale — all High Resolution and top quality. So clicking on 'BUY' simply directs you to a new page to view and shop at your leisure; with the understanding that you are not committing yourself to a purchase. I've put some nice music on this new page as well, you can manage this in the upper right hand quadrant if you would rather have silence.
If you have been to Amazon.Com, or any other online store, the procedure for purchasing my work is equally as easy thanks to PayPal.
A NICE THOUGHT
Photos
Why do we take them?
By Mary Banas
Jan 22nd 2007
Some may remember posing for an "impromptu" photo opportunity during every family gathering. You stood there frozen, with cemented smiles as you wondered if Aunt Thelma would ever take the photograph. Cheese...... then Bam! You were blinded by the bright flash bulb. Auntie had the right idea. She wanted to memorialize every event. It didn't matter if the developed film never made it out of the card board envelopes. What was important is that she enjoyed taking photos.
Amateur photographers everywhere are still snapping pictures as a favorite pastime. Photography is a good means to chronicle someone's life. A picture tells a thousand words, so what an excellent way to document special moments, highlights and milestones.
Over time, our memory isn't as iron-clad as it once was. With photographs you can still recall the special moment even when the memory fades. Photography is good for your well being. Reflect on all the studies that talk about how beneficial laughter is to your health. Now consider your emotions when you see photos of a new baby, or a wedding, or any of the other adorable photos that are found in email in-boxes on a daily basis. They make you happy! Photos elicit positive emotions. Think about the people who were in south Texas during the winter of 2004. I'm sure they were happy to be down there when they had snow for the first time in over 100 years. There were people outside taking pictures at midnight; what an opportunity!
Have you ever seen deer on the side of the road? Not too many bucks will stop long enough to be photographed. If you're fortunate enough to see sitting deer, you better hope to have a camera with you; as they likely won't be sitting there waiting for you the next time you drive by.
While some people still prefer film cameras, digital cameras now come in any size or budget. For the novice photographer who merely enjoys taking photographs as a way to relax or capture those one of a kind moments, suitable digital cameras are available for under $100. Some people are still using 1.3 mega pixel digital cameras. By today's standard, that is considered a dinosaur. However it would still work if the photographer just wanted to take an occasional photo to list items for sale on eBay. Today many amateur photographers are using digital cameras with 4-6 mega pixels. As a rule of thumb, the higher the mega pixel, the higher the price tag. Notwithstanding, higher mega pixel cameras also come with more bells and whistles and have a higher resolution. Most all digital cameras also have a timer and ability to make very small movie clips. Many also have zoom lens features.
With digital photography it is fun to play around with new technology. Create a screen saver of your best photo with Image Box from CoolUtils. If you came back from Hawaii and have lots of great photos that you want not to just show to your friends but amaze them - make an astonishing slideshow. Imagine all pictures will be shown one by one with different effects, accompanied by music and your comments. With ImageBox every photo stops being a snapshot but becomes a living part of the presentation. Your friends will be amazed! Don't think about how difficult it is – you will create your first slideshow in 6 minutes. There are software programs that allow you to make digital images look better than real life by removing unwanted blemishes, moles, or wrinkles. Experiment with the software to add or remove people or objects from the photo. New technology provides the ability to alter a photograph so that it looks like an oil painting, pencil sketch, negative, sepia, black and white, charcoal drawing and a plethora of other options.
While it is possible to make a living as a photographer, the majority of camera users simply take photos because they enjoy it. It's true that time will not stand still. The taunting school aged children had it right when they responded to stares, "Take a picture why don't you – it'll last longer!" Now you do the same - stop reading and go take a picture... it'll last longer! REGISTER
Thank all of you so much for helping me to do something I love and enjoy. Please REGISTER and tell me what you think of the site.
Sincerely
Rick Miller