Four-month old Nicholas Jameson of Minneapolis is going to continue growing up thanks to his quick-acting Mom, Samantha, and expert medical care.  Botulism nearly took his young life.

Over Memorial Day, Nicholas was having trouble breathing and Samantha took him immediately to Children's Hospital in Minneapolis for apparent respiratory failure.   The next day, however, doctors at Children's diagnosed Nicholas with botulism.

Fox9, the Fox TV affiliate in the Twin Cities told the happy-ending story:

A week later, Nicholas had made a miraculous recovery. Dr. Ken Maslonka, the head of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unity at Children’s, was surprised. "He came off the ventilator much faster than any of us thought he would for sure."

The family is still trying to figure out where Nicholas could have caught the bacteria. The only explanation seems to be the backyard where the family had been gardening days before. Botulism spores can live in soil.

Samantha is unsure how it may have happened, because Nicholas wasn’t playing in the dirt. But she theorizes that the bacteria may have become airborne while she was digging and Nicholas may have ingested it.

Doctors say the family’s fast reaction is what saved Nicholas’ life.

You can find the Fox9 story here.