Mum Nikki took this amazing photo of Hudson in the Special Care Baby Unit at York Hospital to share with family and friends after her little boy was born 12 weeks premature weighing just over 2lbs.

Now fighting fit and home with the rest of the family, Nikki said it was a miracle Hudson survived at all - after her waters originally broke when she was just 19 weeks pregnant.

Baby Hudson in the Special Care Baby Unit at York Hospital

The young mum from Holgate faced a terrifying race against time - and the odds - to hold on to her pregnancy, and doctors feared the worst.

She said: "Many a time I was told he wasn't viable or given very low survival rates. They are very blunt about it. It's a miracle he held on."

Hudson was born on October 31 - and was the tiniest baby born that month at York Hospital, said Nikki.

He was born by emergency c-section and whisked straight away to the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) and placed on a ventilator.

Hudson spent the next eight weeks in the unit - and because of Covid restrictions was only permitted visits on rotation from Nikki and his dad Gareth.

Hudson with all his family

Siblings, Gracie, seven, Brinley, five and Oakley, 18 months, had to wait until Hudson was discharged home to see him in person and have their first cuddle and kiss.

Heartbreakingly, Hudson had to spent his first Christmas in hospital - but New Year was a better time for all the family because the tiny baby was discharged on December 30.

Nikki, 29, said: "He came home for New Year and it was brilliant; just amazing to have us all together as a family again.

"The children were so excited, they had been waiting a long time to have him home."

Nikki took lots of photos of Hudson in SCBU, but the most striking is the one of him next to a plastic bottle of Fanta - showing that he was the same size as the bottle of pop.

Hudson meets his siblings at last: Gracie, Brinley and Oakley

She said: "Nobody could see him and everybody was asking me how small he was. I had a bottle of Fanta and took the picture so they could see his size."

Now three months old and weighing almost 6lbs, Hudson is doing really well, she said. "Unless you knew the story, you would just think he is perfect!"

Little Hudson Johnstone

And she was full of praise for the amazing care of doctors, nurses and midwives who looked after them during the long ordeal.

She said: "I can't thank them enough. They were always there for you when no-one else could be."

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