BRADFORD, Ont. - No one expected baby Kaylee Vitelli to live -- not her doctors at the world-renowned Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and certainly not her parents.

And yet the critically ill girl, who was removed from life-support last month with the intention of having her heart transplanted into another ailing child, arrived home Thursday to be cared for by her family instead of medical staff.

Swaddled in a yellow blanket and wearing a flowery sundress, the three-month-old gurgled happily and breathed loudly -- punctuated by short bursts of crying -- as her mother cradled her inside the family home.

The girl was discharged from hospital earlier in the day and transported in a dramatic fashion -- partly via limousine and helicopter -- to her grandparents' home in this central Ontario town.

"We wanted her home, we wanted to have our child beside us," Kaylee's father Jason Wallace said outside the two-storey brick house as curious neighbours gawked.

"It's (been) a very emotional trip for us. The roller-coaster is still going to move forward. But she's going to have two parents, family and great friends that support her through whatever difficulty she has."

Kaylee's story shot to prominence last month when Wallace began holding daily media briefings outside of Sick Kids. He said they went to the media in an attempt to change the minds of the hospital after they were told Kaylee might not meet national standards for a heart transplant.

Then Kaylee defied the odds by continuing to breathe and doctors said a transplant was no longer an option.

Her parents soon developed a reputation for stirring things up.

They complained about Kaylee's treatment at the world-renowned hospital, even asking for her to be transferred to another facility and for police to investigate.

It soon became public that Wallace was also facing criminal charges dating back to 2006.

Even Kaylee's trip home became a web of logistics after a public relations firm representing the family appealed to the media and other possible donors to provide a helicopter to shuttle the girl quickly and safely.

On Thursday after Kaylee was discharged, the family was transported by limousine to Toronto's downtown airport and flown by chopper to their hometown, where a police escort accompanied them home.

The PR firm working for the family sent emails to media outlets at each stage of Kaylee's journey Thursday, tracking her movements in detail.

Dr. Denis Daneman, the pediatrician-in-chief, defended the hospital's actions and their treatment of Kaylee.

"I think the health professionals have handled themselves in the most exemplary way possible. I don't see any way the reputation of our institution has been sullied," he said.

He also said the method of transporting Kaylee home was the family's choice and not deemed essential by the hospital.

"We felt that she would have been fine with ground transportation," he said. "But different people have different views of this."

Kaylee had lived in hospitals since birth because she suffers from Joubert syndrome, a rare malformation of the brain and brain stem that is accompanied by frequently interrupted breathing.

After arriving at the family's home in Bradford, Ont., some 60 kilometres north of Toronto, her parents suggested the move would be a fresh start and an opportunity to raise Kaylee with as normal a life as possible.

"Whatever normal is, she got love," Wallace said. "She got love from everybody around the world, she's got love from her family here.

"So whatever length of time she's going to have on this Earth is going to be one that's not taken for granted at all -- not for one minute, not for one second."

While doctors determined the girl was healthy enough to be moved out of institutional care, she still requires intensive medical support.

Her parents and grandparents will take turns watching over her, and for now they will be aided by a nurse who visits for 30 minutes each day. Kaylee continues to use a breathing machine, various vital monitors and a feeding tube.

"I'm not really scared, I'm just happy," said her mother Crystal Vitelli.

"We've dealt with all these things at the hospital. So if anything happens, we know what to do."

With Kaylee in her arms, Vitelli described her daughter as friendly, content, determined and able to lie still for hours.

Kaylee's grandfather Roy Vitelli said he expects the girl to continue to defy the odds.

"I want her to touch the grass just to see the expression on her face," he said. "The doctors say she won't see, she won't talk or walk, but I think they'll be wrong."