PICTURED: BATTLING babe John Dooley celebrates his first birthday with proud parents Julia and Chris.

BABY'S first birthday is always a special occasion for any family. But it was an extra-special milestone for little John Dooley and his loving parents Chris and Julia, of Dodd Avenue, Old Eccleston.

For the fact that the brave toddler got to his first candle on the cake at all is a miracle, after John was born three months prematurely suffering from serious breathing problems.

Originally, one of twins, John weighed just 1Ib 13oz when he was born - less than a bag of sugar - and had to be connected to an oxygen cylinder 24 hours a day to help him breathe.

Tragically, his equally tiny twin brother Thomas, died aged just six weeks after contracting an infection. But John battled on and his delighted parents were eventually allowed to take him home after six months in the Liverpool Royal Women's Hospital where he was born.

However, since those dark days, John has come on in leaps and bounds and now weighs in at a strapping 19Ib. In addition, the hospital are so pleased with his progress that they have said he no longer needs the oxygen.

Chris told the Star: "It wasn't easy for us at first but John has surprised everyone with his progress and we were both over the moon when the doctor said he didn't need the oxygen tank anymore."

To celebrate John's first birthday, Chris and Julia, who is expecting the couple's second child in August, held a huge party for family and friends, including nurses from the hospital ward where baby John staged his fight for life.

"The party was brilliant and more than 200 people turned up. We can't thank everyone enough for being so supportive.

"I went into Pimbletts in St Helens to order a small birthday cake for John and told the staff there a little bit about him. When I went to pick it up later, they came out with a huge cake, iced with 'Happy Birthday John and Thomas' and told me it was on the house. I was overwhelmed."

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