- Anna Ames shares her preemie's NICU journey to inspire other parents.
- Her son Logan was born at 22 weeks and spent 163 days in NICU.
- Logan, now 8 months old, is home but still requires oxygen and a G-tube.
BLACKFOOT, Idaho — A Blackfoot mother who documented her baby's growth in the NICU with unique photos hopes her family's journey inspires others in similar situations.
Anna and Jacob Ames were married in July 2015 and tried to start having children two years later. But after seven years of negative pregnancy tests, the couple began the IVF process at Idaho Fertility Center.
"It was a long process, but in September 2022, two of the embryos were twins, and they both took," Anna Ames told EastIdahoNews.com.
Around four months later, Anna began having serious complications and was forced to deliver one of the babies at 19 weeks. The second child was delivered a week later. Both girls, Taylor and Riley, did not survive.
Over the next few years, Anna had two miscarriages, but one year ago this week, things changed for the young couple.
"We transferred (the embryo) on Feb. 9, 2025," Anna said, referring to the IVF transfer date – the specific day a fertilized embryo is placed into the uterus.
The Ameses were hopeful that Anna could carry the baby boy — later named Logan — to full term. His due date was Oct. 25, but in June, she was admitted to Mountain View Hospital with pregnancy problems.
"The hospital will not try to resuscitate below 22 weeks, so I was in the hospital with an epidural for an entire week before he was delivered, trying to make it to 22 weeks," Anna said.
Logan was born one day over the 22-week mark on June 22. He weighed around 1 pound and measured 10.25 inches.
At 6 days old, he needed surgery and was taken by ambulance to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, where he spent the next 163 days in the NICU.
"It was exhausting. The doctor said numerous times that he was the sickest baby in the unit for a long time, and it was cause for celebration, for us, when he wasn't the sickest baby anymore," Anna said.
To help keep her spirits up, Anna began documenting her son's stay by taking a photo nearly every day. Some of the pictures were serious, but many were lighthearted and fun. There were holiday-themed images, photos marking important milestones and others meant to make people smile.
"I got a lot of the ideas from Pinterest and seeing what people did with their other babies. Sometimes I just came up with ideas on my own, and some were jokes with the nurses that we decided to actually do," Anna said.
Anna began posting the photos on an Instagram page she called Reality of an IVF Family. She and Jacob traveled daily between the hospital in Idaho Falls and their home in Blackfoot to spend time with Logan. A local Secret Santa heard about the Ames family and asked the EastIdahoNews.com team to surprise them in the hospital with a gift in November.
Finally, after six surgeries and other procedures, Logan was cleared to go home on Dec. 8.
"He's 8 months old now and weighs 9.5 lbs. He is still on oxygen and a G-tube for feeding, but hopefully over the next year, he won't need either of them anymore," Anna said.
Anna is still posting photos on Instagram and has a message to other parents with NICU babies.
"It's a long journey, but coming out the other side is rewarding. We are just so thrilled with our little miracle baby," she said.
Below are some of the photos Anna took over the past eight months.
