I'm catching you up: The amazing recovery of the baby boy born half the size of his twin sister

Having been starved of blood in the womb, he was only half the size of his 3Ib 4oz sister Harriet.

Thirteen months later, however, he has astonished his parents by thriving against the odds  -  and is well on the way to catching Harriet up.

Look how they've grown: Harriet (left) and James are now 13 months old and both thriving

'We are so proud of him,' said his mother Shelley.

'The doctors can't believe what a fighter he turned out to be.'

Mrs White, 29, discovered she was pregnant in November 2006.

Two months later she was told she was having twins.

A scan at 24 weeks showed that James was not growing properly and tests showed there was virtually no blood flow to him.

'Doctors told me that if I could get to 28 weeks pregnant then there would be a chance he would survive,' said Mrs White, a teacher from Burton on Trent, Staffordshire.

'We were absolutely devastated.

Intensive care: James was half the size of his sister when he was born

'The doctors scanned me every few days and each time I went for a scan I expected the worst, and to be told that James had no heartbeat.'

After 29 weeks, it was found that James was receiving no blood at all, and could survive for only a few more days.

He needed to be delivered immediately by emergency caesarean, but that could harm the chances for survival of Harriet, who was thriving in the womb.

'It was a horrendous decision that we had to make,' said Mrs White, whose 30-year-old husband John is a dispatch worker.

'Did we let James die to save his sister, or did we opt to deliver the twins and for them to have a small chance each?

We decided that we couldn't choose one over the other, so we had to let fate take over, and we would let doctors deliver both the twins.'

The operation was carried out at the University of North Staffordshire Hospital.

Tiny tot: New-born James fitted into his palm of his father's hand

Mrs White said: 'We just heard Harriet make a small cry as she was delivered, then James who didn't make a sound.

'Both were rushed over to intensive care and I didn't get to see them until the next morning.

'I just burst into tears when I saw how small James was.

'He was so tiny I didn't think that he could possibly survive.

'Harriet looked huge in comparison. She was twice the size of him.

'His skin was seethrough so I could see all his ribs and he was covered in downy hair.

'But he surprised us all right from the day he was born  -  he was such a fighter.

'Harriet had to be put on the ventilator to help her breathe, but James never did.

Proud parents: Shelley and John White with the twins

'He was so used to struggling in my womb for survival.

'He just went from strength to strength.'

Harriet was allowed home after seven weeks in hospital, and James after nine weeks.

Both have healthy appetites and love homemade shepherd's pie.

Harriet now weighs 20Ib 1oz and James 14Ib 14oz.

Mrs White added: 'They are both doing really well, and James is catching up.

'He's talking and developing like he should, which is great.

'When I think of him fitting in John's hand, it seems hard to believe that he has grown into such an energetic little boy.'