During the first week of Hunter Aagaard's life, his parents thought they would be planning his funeral rather than taking him to his nursery in their Kennewick home.
But on Tuesday, Kristen Tisdale and Erik Aagaard brought their 3-week-old son home for the first time.
When Hunter was born Aug. 24, he got stuck on his way out of his mother's womb and stopped breathing, said his grandmother Cheryl Cassens, who was present for his birth.
Cassens, who is Erik Aagaard's mother, said she saw her grandson dead.
It took 61/2 minutes to resuscitate the baby, his grandmother said. One Kadlec Regional Medical Center nurse told the family that was the longest she had done chest compressions on a baby and had it survive.
Hunter and his dad were flown to Seattle Children's Hospital just five hours after he was born at the Richland hospital. Tisdale, 22, followed shortly by car. The infant spent 10 days at Children's, eight of them in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
A ventilator helped keep Hunter alive, so he was more than a week old the first time his parents heard him cry. He needed seven blood transfusions the first day and suffered a seizure the second day. He still is on medication from the seizures.
His parents didn't hold Hunter until he was 4 days old. Tisdale said she held him first, based on the argument that she had carried him for nine months and gone through 22 hours of labor to deliver the 7 pound, 91/2 ounce boy.
Cassens said they were told the whole front of Hunter's brain had died. But tests later showed only a smaller portion was damaged.
His mother said Hunter already responds to his parents and seems to distinguish their voices. They were told at first that he may never recognize his parents.
Hunter spent 10 days at Children's Hospital instead of the two months predicted, the family said.
Tisdale said they won't really know how much brain damage Hunter has until he reaches various baby milestones, like crawling, walking and talking.
Hunter hasn't used his right arm yet. That is the shoulder Cassens said got stuck during delivery. He has been diagnosed with brachial palsy, which will require some physical therapy.
Hunter was sent by ambulance from Seattle back to Kadlec 10 days ago so he could continue to recover closer to home. Although he was breathing on his own, he still needed a feeding tube.
"He pulled the tube out on his own three days ago," she said.
Tisdale said she is convinced prayer is the reason Hunter is alive today. "I believe all those prayers were answered," she said.
She said they are grateful for all the support they have received. Tri-Citians have donated to help Hunter at Gold's Gym, where Aagaard, 26, works as a personal trainer, and friends held a car wash.
Tisdale said the money will help pay for whatever insurance doesn't cover for Hunter's care.
