What started as a dream vacation, turned into 35 nightmarish days for Russell and Marie Luttrell.
The McKinney couple agreed to be in a friend's Peruvian wedding before they found out they were pregnant with their first child.
Twenty-eight weeks into their pregnancy, doctors cleared Marie Luttrell fit to travel to Peru. The Luttrells thought it would the honeymoon they had never had.
Within 48 hours of landing in Lima, Peru Marie found herself being wheeled into a hospital for an emergency C-section with doctors she did not understand.
"They wouldn't let Russell go back there with me, so I came out of surgery and no one could tell me if [the baby] was alive, where Russell was and no one spoke English so it was absolutely terrifying," said Marie.
Weighing just two pounds, baby Turner Grace arrived with a hole in her heart, undeveloped lungs and more.
"She looked frail and was so tiny," said Marie. "It was a very frightening thing."
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"For the first couple of days we didn't know anything about anything," said Russell. "The doctors would try to talk to us and we'd get as far as 'Bueno' — meaning things are good today."
Marie also came down with a serious infection and for 16 painful days was unable to hold her newborn.
Local laws kept the newborn — a Peruvian resident — from leaving the country and medical bills had to be paid up front.
"We just put our faith and trust in the doctors and God and prayed for the best and we're very fortunate that we are where we are today."
Family and friends raised thousands of dollars to fly the Luttrells home to Medical City in Dallas. It is the same hospital where three years earlier Marie was told she had AML Lukemia and most likely would never have children.
"She's here and she is a miracle," said Marie. "We are just so grateful and humbled by everyone's generosity."
