Kira was born June 8th 2004 by emergency c-section at Peel Memorial. She entered our lives without making a sound and was rushed away for medical attention. When we first saw her we knew something was not right. She was not able to drink from a bottle, cry, or move.

After two long weeks we were told she had Prader-willi syndrome. The Doctor showed us a picture of a child with PWS from an out dated medical book and gave us some information about the syndrome. Then he told us to love our baby.

After a month at the hospital we finally brought Kira home, nose tube and all!! I used to set my alarm to wake up in the middle of the night to feed her. Forward five years and now the syndrome has us locking our cabinets and keeping all food away from Kira. She is on a diet of less than 700 calories a day so that we can try and maintain her weight.

Kira has made many gains in five years and they have not come easily. She has to work so much harder to accomplish things that come to the rest of us so easily. One goal that we are still struggling with is walking. Kira is just starting to walk a little on her own, but prefers her walker. We have been walking around our block everyday with her walker and then she gets an "ice cream " (frozen yogurt) for her snack. We are also trying to get Kira on Growth Hormone. It has been a difficult and disappointing journey, but we are hopeful that soon she will be back on GH and can benefit from it.

Living with a child with special needs is not always easy but those who know Kira also know what a wonderful little girl she is. She has made many people smile when we are out and about!!

Our family has participated in the One Small Step in the past but have always made a personal donation. This year I have decided to ask for your help in raising money to eliminate the challenges ( and there are many!!) of PWS.

Thank you
Natalie Wilby