Mom's Emotional Tribute to Her "Miracle" Preemie After Watching Her Take Her First Steps

There are specific things from the birth of Ashley Costanzo's baby that she won't forget: the anesthesiologist holding her hand and reassuring her as she cried, the way the second IV felt that nurses started after they realized how much blood she was losing, and overhearing doctors discuss that they had never seen a placenta look like hers before.

When Everly came into the world nine weeks early, her mom cried herself to sleep as she dealt with the overwhelming emotions that came with her new reality. "I remember hearing [my doctor] say, 'A few more hours and the baby would not have been here, and if Ashley had just gone back to bed, she may have not been here either,'" Ashley shared on the Love What Matters Facebook page. "How could I have been that close to losing a child, or my own life? I'm invincible right?"

At this time, Ashley's daily hardships were just beginning and she says her baby's days in the NICU were the hardest of her life. "Watching your little baby drop to 2 lbs 13 oz, having slight problems along the way, maintaining her weight hoping to grow a little was like watching a miracle before our eyes," she wrote. "We watched her physically grow eyelashes, nails grow longer, hair come and go, and finish developing into the little girl she is today."

Although those painful memories are still vivid in Ashley's mind, they have made Everly's milestones that much more memorable and exciting. "And today . . . my former 3 lb 2 oz miracle baby that was born from a placental abruption took her first steps four days from 17 months old. I am so proud of her, I have cried and cried," she shared. "Just a month ago, I was starting to question if she was in need of some help and was worried something was wrong . . . but she has proven me wrong, again and again."

Despite her pure joy over Everly's accomplishments, Ashley has a message for all moms who are still pregnant: