An adorable 'graduation' was held for a pair of twins born at just 22 weeks who beat the odds - and were allowed to go home.<br /><br />Babies Kimyah and DJ were given as little as a 10% chance of survival when they entered the world last October.<br /><br />The siblings - the smallest nurses have ever seen - could fit in mum Kimberly Thomas' hands.<br /><br />But, miraculously, the battled through - and were allowed home after around four months in intensive care, on February 27, 2023.<br /><br />Staff at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio held a 'graduation' for the family to celebrate the special moment.<br /><br />Kimyah and DJ, now 11 months, were given gowns and mortarboards to mark the occasion.<br /><br />Mum Kimberly said: “I was super excited when I found out they were able to come home."<br /><br />And nurse Becky Stuart said: "It was a huge celebration. <br /><br />"During their time in the NICU [intensive care], I treated them as if they were my own children.<br /><br />"I love them like I love my own girls and formed a bond with them that will stick with me forever.”<br /><br />Kimberly, 25, from Bedford, Ohio, says she first knew something was wrong when she started leaking amniotic fluid - which protects the fetus during pregnancy.<br /><br />She called her doctor, who found she was already in labour - and four centimetres dilated. <br /><br />At just over five months pregnant, Kimberly was told her twins would have a slim chance of survival. <br /><br />Once the twins were delivered, they were immediately resuscitated and intubated. <br /><br />Nurses say they could fit each twin in the palm of their hands - and the smallest-size nappies were still too big for them. <br /><br />Nurse Sara Perrin said: “These were the smallest babies I had ever seen, much less taken care of. <br /><br />“I had to learn how to adapt to their size while caring for them. It was quite challenging.”<br /><br />Kimberly was unable to hold her babies for the first month of their lives - because their skin was too fragile to touch.<br /><br />But she spent every day and night with them in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) until they were discharged. <br /><br />She said: “I would then go into the NICU just to talk to my babies. I don’t think there was one day I didn’t spend at least a few minutes with them. <br /><br />“I pretty much lived in the NICU for four-and-a-half months.”<br /><br />While in the NICU, DJ suffered a lung collapse and Kimyah had a small bleed on her brain - but they still managed to meet their milestones despite this.<br /><br />Kimberly said: “We celebrated every milestone with them while they were in the hospital.<br /><br />“We had their baby shower at three months, and we did a photoshoot to mark their due date, which was Valentine’s Day.”<br /><br />And, after 138 days, the twins were allowed to go home with Kimberly and dad Damante Jackson - but they were still monitored at all times. <br /><br />Kimberly said: "They needed to remain on oxygen since their lungs were so underdeveloped when they were born.<br /><br />“I also needed to continue checking their blood oxygen saturation levels.”<br /><br />Now, almost one year on from birth, the twins are catching up to their height and weight goals.<br /><br />Although they remain on target with achieving their developmental milestones, it will still be a few years before they can tell if the twins will experience any developmental delay, the Cleveland Clinic said.<br /><br />But Kimberly can now hold her children whenever she wants - and are continuing to celebrate milestones with them.<br /><br />She said: “Kimyah and DJ are very active and love exploring. Thinking about everything they’ve been through, it was hard to imagine us ever getting to this point.<br /><br />"It was unclear if they would be able to do anything by themselves. Now, they’re trying to do everything by themselves.<br /><br />"You have to stay positive and focus on the outcome you want.<br /><br />“How did they manage to get through what they did? That’s what I think to myself every day.” <br /><br />Dr Firas Saker, a medical director at the clinic, added: “It’s amazing to see the twins thriving. It serves as a reminder to all of us here why we do what we do every day.
