Perrin James Vance has been called a “wonder” and a “rock star,” but to his adoptive parents, Stephanie and Brett Vance, their baby boy is simply a “miracle,” one of the smallest preemies ever born at Methodist Richardson Medical Center.
“He was so tiny and fragile, and you kind of felt like you were going to break him,” Stephanie says. “But then you just get used to it and you’re like, this fits.”
Weighing just 1 pound, 11.9 ounces, Perrin was born nearly four months early on December 14, 2022, and shortly afterward his birth parents made the difficult decision to put him up for adoption. The Garland couple heard from the adoption agency the very next day.
“Everybody else gets nine months,” says Brett, 36. “We got the call and had a baby.”
Stephanie agrees: “It’s really crazy,” she says, “beautiful crazy.”
On June 21, 2023, the adoption became official when the couple, holding their baby tight, filled District Judge Beth Poulos’ courtroom in Fort Worth with their friends and family.
The joyful day was a long time coming for Stephanie and Brett, who had suffered through five miscarriages and several would-be adoptions that fell through. So last December, the newborn became their “Christmas miracle.”
“We believe this was all in God’s hands,” says Stephanie, 34. “If everything had not aligned the way it did, it would be an entirely different story.”
NO HESITATION
The Vances had expected when they got married a decade ago to have a houseful of children by now. But Stephanie’s five pregnancies ended in miscarriage, and their previous efforts to adopt stalled when the birth mothers changed their minds or chose another couple.
So the couple had no children. And they’d been ready for a long time. That’s why Stephanie did not hesitate when the adoption agency’s director posed a question:
“How would you feel about adopting a preemie?”
“Yes,” Stephanie said, then asked how many other families were in contention for this little boy.
“None,” she was told. “We knew you would be the ones.”
Years earlier, Stephanie had been a nanny for her cousins, one of whom was a preemie. She also has a nephew with cerebral palsy, a condition with which premature babies are often diagnosed.
She told Brett, accurately predicting how he’d respond.
“I was terrified, but I trusted that she was ready,” Brett says. “We were ready, and I mean, what more is there?”
Baby Perrin changed hands many times on his adoption day at the Tarrant County Courthouse.
14 WEEKS IN NICU
When Brett and Stephanie began visiting Perrin in the NICU, he was so tiny that Brett’s wedding ring could have fit around his arm.
“They were here every day, every single day,” says Lilian St. John, MD, medical director of the neonatal intensive care unit at Methodist Richardson. “They had such kind hearts to welcome Perrin into their lives. I was touched by that.”
Initially, the couple couldn’t even hold their son. When babies are born so young, Dr. St. John explains, their skin is too fragile.
“It’s very immature and transparent,” she says. “He had a lot of fluid loss through the skin, which is why we place such babies in a special incubator with high humidity until their skin matures.”
But finally Stephanie got her hands on her baby boy: “It’s called kangaroo holding, so skin to skin. It was very scary watching them lift him up with everything attached to him.”
Throughout Perrin’s 14-week stay at Methodist Richardson, Dr. St. John kept his family apprised of everything. She answered questions, eased fears, and shared her expertise with honesty and optimism. Above all, she was there for the entire family.
“Dr. St. John was with us from the get-go,” Stephanie says.
Brett and Stephanie have been waiting a long time for a baby of their own.
READY FOR ADVENTURE
Perrin was released to go home within two weeks of his due date when he was able to maintain his body temperature and could finish his bottles without the aid of a feeding tube.
Now approaching his second birthday, the Vances’ toddler is constantly on the move, curious about everything.
“It feels like it goes so quick,” his mother says, “but you don’t even have a chance to miss the last stage because you’re already enjoying the next big thing.”
The couple recently returned to Methodist Richardson for a NICU reunion where families caught up with the staff who once cared for their newborns’ every need.
“They put a lot of heart in everything they do,”” Stephanie says. “They helped us make memories from day one to, you know, we saw 10-year-olds at the reunion who were born there. It’s just incredible.”
The Vances are grateful for everything but most of all for their miracle baby.
I’ve learned a lot from that little guy,” Stephanie says. “I feel blessed to be his mom.”
