Most parents are lucky. Upon adding a new baby to our family, we have the opportunity to mark every blessed week, month, or first holiday of our little one’s life with a picture and a milestone card. If you haven’t used them, you’ve certainly seen them all over your friends’ Facebook walls. “I’m 2 months old today!” or “This is my first Christmas!” But for 10 percent of babies born, which amounts to about 15 million babies per year, just doing the most basic of things, like breathing on their own, or getting to snuggle with their mother, is a Herculean task. This is the reality for premature babies.
One mom took note of this fact. Amy Purling found herself in the sad and unfortunate situation of having a son born 10 weeks early. Her little boy, who had a life-threatening platelet disorder, spent the first five weeks of his life in the neonatal intensive care unit. Amazingly, had he been born as much as a week later he wouldn’t have survived, due to his blood clotting issues. Thanks to three platelet transfusions in the NICU, he was able to eventually thrive. But, as Purling noted, every moment with a preemie in the NICU is incredibly stressful for the parents. She wanted to find a way for parents like her to “document and celebrate each moment of growth and development of their baby.”
Scary Mommy explains::
One of the most cherished moments the family has is when the newborn was strong enough to be rested on his mom’s chest. A nurse took a photo of James’ milestone and Purling became inspired to document her son’s journey.
“I started writing a journal anytime he did anything new, the first time he opened his eyes,” she said.
Eventually, she decided to turn her experiences into a small business, called Miracle Mumma, where she creates and sells milestone cards for other families of preemies.
…There are a lot of moms and dads who cherish the special cards that celebrate their little ones breathing without tubes or gaining weight or leaving the NICU.
“I have made it my mission to help others who will go through the same,” Purling said. “I believe these milestone cards are helping to make this frightening time just a little bit brighter for these families.”
Unlike the milestone cards that you might see in your friends’ social media, Purling’s cards address special milestones that only preemie families might experience. They include sayings like “I graduated from NICU today,” “First cuddle with dad,” and “Today I’m breathing all on my own.” See some precious images from Miracle Mumma’s Instagram feed below.
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