'Miracle baby' born with serious disorder

EXCEL, Ala. (WALA) - Phillip and Leiana Brown are celebrating the life of their "miracle child" Madilynn Anahera Brown. She was born on December 5 at 9:19 a.m. with only a brain stem.

“She’s a miracle," Phillip Brown said.

Madilynn was born with Anencephaly, a neural tube defect which can result in babies being born without parts of their skull.  The CDC estimates more than one in every 5,000 children in the U.S. will be born with the condition.

“It was heart-shattering; it really is," Leiana Brown said.  "As a mother, you try to do what you can to always do your best for your children and keep them from harm’s way.  And you’re being told that your child has only a short time on earth.  It’s amazing that she defeated all the odds against her, and she has been fighting for me, just like I would fight for her.”

"We just kept our faith and prayed and hoped for a miracle. And here she is, five days old and she's doing wonderful," Phillip Brown said.  "The doctors don’t know what to tell us because they don’t really know.  They can’t give us a time or anything for her.  She’s just our little blessing.  We just thank God for every day and every minute we get with her.

None of us know how long much time we have, and I think most will agree that makes life more precious.  It certainly does for the Browns, still glowing, and cherishing every moment.

“You just take life for granted until something like this hits you and you really realize what a blessing family and life is," Phillip Brown said.

Life isn’t about the amount of minutes we have; it’s how wonderful we make those minutes. 

If you want to show your support for the Browns, you can “like” the Facebook page "Prayers for Madilynn."