SG. 🙏 A Texas mother is sharing her baby’s terrifying medical scare in hopes it might save another child.

When Ava Faith turned two months old on February 4, her family should have been celebrating milestones — tiny coos, sleepy smiles, and the quiet joy of watching a newborn grow.

Instead, she was lying in a hospital bed, fighting for her life.

What makes her story so frightening is not just the diagnosis — but how easily the warning signs could have been missed.

It started subtly. At daycare, someone noticed that Ava’s skin looked a little “off.” Not dramatically yellow. Not enough to spark immediate panic. Just slightly different in tone. At home, her parents had observed only one real change: her stools had become pale yellow.

Otherwise, Ava seemed perfectly healthy.

She was smiling. Eating well. Filling her diapers. Acting like a happy, thriving baby. Nothing about her behavior suggested that anything was seriously wrong.

But when doctors ran bloodwork, the results told a very different story.

Ava was diagnosed with biliary atresia — a rare and life-threatening condition in which a baby’s bile ducts are damaged, blocked, or, in some cases like Ava’s, completely absent at birth. These ducts are essential for carrying bile from the liver to the intestines. Without that pathway, bile becomes trapped in the liver, causing rapid and irreversible damage.

Without surgical intervention, babies with biliary atresia do not survive.

For Ava’s mother, Alexandria, the diagnosis felt like the ground had fallen out from beneath her.

“No parent would ever want to see their newborn go through all she is going through,” she said. “From being pricked for blood on her tiny little heel to watching her little body in a big bed be wheeled off to a surgery room.”

Ava’s only chance was an operation known as the Kasai procedure — a complex and delicate surgery in which doctors remove the damaged bile ducts and connect a portion of the intestine directly to the liver to help bile drain. The goal is to restore bile flow and slow the damage to the liver.

It is not a cure. But it can buy precious time — and in some cases, spare a child from needing an immediate liver transplant.

The surgery was intense, but it went forward with hope.

Then, just days later, that hope was shaken.

Doctors monitoring Ava’s recovery noticed thick, discolored fluid collecting in her surgical drain. Something wasn’t right. After further evaluation, they discovered that a stitch had come loose internally, causing a leak.

She was rushed back into the operating room for emergency surgery.

For the second time in a single week, her parents watched their tiny baby be wheeled away under bright hospital lights, not knowing what the next hours would bring.

By the grace of quick medical intervention, doctors caught the complication in time. The leak was repaired, and Ava was stabilized.

As if her case were not already rare enough, doctors also discovered that she had been born without a gallbladder — an unusual finding that added another layer of complexity to her condition.

Now, after two major surgeries in one week, Ava is recovering. Her journey is far from over, but she is fighting — just as she has from the very beginning.

What makes her story especially powerful is how subtle the early signs were:

• Mild jaundice
• Pale or clay-colored stools
• Slight changes in skin tone

That was it.

No dramatic symptoms. No obvious distress. Just small, easily overlooked clues.

Alexandria is sharing her daughter’s story for one reason: awareness.

Biliary atresia progresses quickly. Early detection can make the difference between a successful surgical outcome and severe liver damage. Many parents may not realize that pale or clay-colored stools in an infant can signal a serious liver problem.

She wants other families to know what she didn’t.

If your baby’s stools are pale, gray, or clay-colored — don’t ignore it. If your child’s skin tone seems slightly off, even without obvious jaundice — ask questions. If something feels different in your gut, trust that instinct.

Request labs. Push for answers. Advocate for your child.

Because sometimes the smallest signs can point to the biggest dangers.

Today, Ava Faith is healing — surrounded by machines, monitors, and the constant prayers of those who love her. Her mother hopes that by sharing their nightmare, another parent might recognize the signs sooner and seek help faster.

Please keep sweet Ava Faith in your thoughts as she continues to recover.

And share her story.

It could save a life.