Peter and his wife Ashleigh call their son Riley their “little fighter.”This is his nickname because he made it to his first birthday, which was well beyond what doctors told them.
When Riley was born, he was diagnosed with a rare disorder called Zellweger syndrome.
Doctors told Peter and Ashleigh that he could day die at any point.
But they dreamed of bringing their son home from the hospital. That day came. Then they hoped he would live to celebrate both Mother’s Day and Father’s day. Those days came. Later it was a massive deal to get to have their baby with them for Christmas.
Then they were able to have a whole year with Riley. This was way beyond their expectations. The family was able to have a birthday bash for their miracle baby.
Ashleigh states that the year was full of hope, love, and happiness.
But the year was not always easy for them.
Each night his parents were only able to sleep around two hours each night. Riley has been revived seven times. When they see he needs CPR, they do not even think twice and automatically start performing it. They state that it is more than just a couple compressions and a couple breaths. It takes a long time to bring him back. To Peter and Ashleigh, it feels like hours. It is a stressful situation and many thoughts run through their head.
Doctors told Peter Ashleigh to let Riley go, but they kept fighting for his life. They believed this was the right thing to do, since it seems like Riley’s condition was improving.
The couple remains positive and optimistic about their son’s future.
