A BARROW mum has shared incredible photos showing the moment her baby boy was born 14 weeks early, weighing less than a bag of sugar and smaller than an adult hand.

Katie Slater and Aaron Kay welcomed baby Milo into the world on May 19 2015, a full 14 weeks before his due date in August.

Ms Slater's pregnancy was beset by complications from the 12 week mark, and matters escalated at 26 weeks when she reported to Furness General Hospital feeling unwell.

Ms Slater said: "At first the nurses thought I had a weak bladder, but after an emergency scan, they couldn't find any amniotic fluid in my womb."

This was an immediate cause for concern for the consultant, who recommended travelling to the Neonatal Unit at Burnley General Hospital for further tests and treatment.

Burnley's Neonatal Unit was able to provide the necessary 24-hour intensive and special care for infants born at any stage during the pregnancy.

Reliving the journey, Ms Slater said: "I made the two-and-a-half hour journey to Burnley at night, on my own."

"After being given a bed there, I woke up in the middle of the following night and knew something was wrong."

After detecting no blood flow through the umbilical cord, doctors performed an emergency caesarean section, delivering Milo at 3am.

An anxious wait followed as Milo lay unresponsive for the first five minutes of his life, and required breathing support from a ventilator for the first few hours. It was 16 hours before Ms Slater was able to see her son again.

Tiny Milo - a baby brother to Cody and Leon - weighed a mere 2lb at birth. At just 945g, he weighed less than a bag of sugar.

Ms Slater described her emotions on seeing her baby boy: "First of all it was shock, but then a whole range of other emotions that you go through.

"I cried when I first saw him, to see a baby so small was so difficult."

After just seven days, Milo faced another obstacle when doctors diagnosed streptococcal meningitis.

He required a further 10 weeks of medical attention, and was still only 4lb, 3oz when he eventually made it home the following July.

Ms Slater added: "The first two-and-a-half weeks in Burnley were hard - part of me wanted to come home, to be in my own bed and recover, but I didn't want to be away from my baby."

"Most of the time I had no-one to support me and I was so far away from home."

Thankfully, Milo has been able to make a full recovery. Although Ms Slater worries about his heightened susceptibility to illness, she proudly hailed her miracle baby.

Inspired by stories shared on World Prematurity Day last week, she told of her own son's battle against the odds in support of others who share similar experiences.

"He was under observation from a consultant until this year, but he's doing better than anyone expected. His development is on track, and he started crawling and walking earlier than they thought he would.

"Now he's a normal, bouncy two-year-old."