A long road to recovery: Tulsa family prepares to bring baby home from Texas after surgeries

A Tulsa family has spent months away from home after learning their unborn baby had a rare lung condition.

They say they're finally seeing signs of hope and look forward to bringing their son home soon.

During Amanda Senf's 18-week prenatal appointment, an ultrasound discovered something was wrong with her baby boy -- a large mass was growing in his left lung.

"It was very, very scary," she said. "Very nerve-wracking."

Amanda was sent to Texas Children's Hospital even before Baby Nikkia was born. He arrived on April 18, and in his first week, he had two surgeries. One to remove part of his lung, and the other to insert a feeding tube. He relies on oxygen and breathes mostly with one lung.

Amanda says she's grateful for the support from the doctors.

"They went above and beyond, and definitely blown away at how good he's done, even they say he's exceeding expectations," she said.

But being away from home for months has been hard.

"We have just been trying to keep in touch with family as much as possible, so we don't feel as isolated," she said.

In Tulsa, Amanda’s mom, Laurrie May, is doing everything she can to keep their lives together.

"Any way and every way I can. Maintaining their house, taking care of their dogs, making sure they have at least a few bucks to eat on," she said.

The family hopes to come home soon, but says this experience has changed how they see everything.

"Definitely be grateful and to take everything in stride," Amanda said.

Before they can get back to Tulsa, Nikkia has several tests to pass. The hope is that it will happen within the next several weeks.

For now, they’re holding onto faith and looking forward to introducing Nikkia to his home.

Once he's back in Tulsa, Baby Nikkia will continue recovering at home with medical support. His parents say they’re just grateful they’ll finally be able to be surrounded by family.

Contribue to baby Nikkia's needs at the GoFundMe HERE.