Although the sun was shining, nothing could outshine this little girl's face at the pool. Adriana Lyons was the spark in her mother's eye as Patty's face beamed as she dressed her 2 1/2-year-old daughter to go into the pool. They had a play date with another mother and daughter, Isis. Adriana's cousins waited to play with her too.

This miracle baby was born 25 weeks prematurely. She weighed a mere 1 pound 14 ounces and spent 11 weeks in the NIC. It was a blinding whirl of specialists and equipment. But, Patty and Adriana's journey became even harder once they came home, for now they were all alone, without a team of professionals trained to care and guide. Going home meant learning a new world of chronic conditions, more therapists and new agencies to help this family meet the needs of this special little girl.

At 2 years, 5 months, Adriana was not mobile, playing independently, rolling from her back to her belly, commando crawling, sitting independently or feeding herself. Patty learned about an intensive therapy program called Euro-peds where patients receive 40 hours of therapy over a course of 2 weeks. Family Directed Resources was able to send this mother-daughter team to this session April 2005.

The ten days passed quickly after much work and a lot of tears. It was very hard work indeed for Adriana as she spent several hours a day first warming up and having her muscles stretched. Then she worked on building her strength throughout her trunk so that she could maintain control of her body and learn to crawl and roll over.

Adriana's success came however, after she got back home and followed the specific routine prescribed for her. Patty worked daily with Adriana and it wasn't until her Early Intervention service plan was reviewed, did she realize the achievements of her daughter. Today, Adriana is mobile, crawling independently with specific intent. She is working one-on-one with her therapists, is clearly responding to yes and no questions, knows her right and her left and is responding to verbal cues.

These "Measurable Outcomes" are significant to a little girl who could not move independently. She faces many new challenges ahead and undoubtedly new achievements. With the help of the trained professionals of Delaware County Board of Developmental Disabilities, Adriana and her mom can face these challenges head on.