All around the world, babies pop out of the womb a little too quickly. Approximately 450,000 babies a year in the US are born prematurely, which means one in nine babies are born with deficiencies, but that number is declining going into the new decade. Some babies born too early can get something called “preterm birth” which is the number one reason on why most premature babies die, suffering from eating and breathing problems, and making it harder for babies to stay alive.

Here are some of the craziest stories of babies who were born way too early and now are doing perfectly fine.

Nathan was born at 22 weeks old and was weighed at 4 lbs. He also had to stay in the hospital for the next 82 days to fully recover and grow his brain. He is now 5 years old and doing fine. No medication needed, he is growing fully and is at the same rate as other kids his age.

Lindsay McMillan gave birth to her daughter Emery. She was born 12 weeks early. After birth Emery and her mom spent the next 62 days in the NICU. That was almost 4 years ago. Her mom says “Emery is a very loving sweet girl that loves to play with animals, read, and play dress up.” Her mother says that she still will never forget the hard and sad time they had to spend in the NICU.

Shelly Jones gave birth to her daughter at 29 weeks. Being born at 2 lbs 7 oz she was really tiny. Shelly calls her daughter “my miracle baby” because she always believed her daughter would make it. Her parents describe her as a “ball of fire” as she is very outgoing. She is now happily living at 11-years-old and is on no medication and living her best life possible.