Friday, March 16th. Kaia's comments

As we near Lauren's homecoming, we're celebrating by helping others! Over the last few months we have personally witnessed the trials and tribulations of many babies in our hospital's NICU. We have also heard many stories of others with newborn prematurity experiences.

The first thing we have done is particiate in the Walk for America, to celebrate Lauren's health, and help improve the potential of future premature infants. My colleagues at EDAW have been so>inspired by Lauren's fight for life over the last 3 months that they've initiated a fund raising effort for next month's March of Dimes Walk for America. TEAM LAUREN honors our sweet and feisty little girl as well as all of the premature babies born before her, whose successes and challenges guided Lauren's care team to know how to help her become the beautiful and healthy girl she is today.

Please join us in celebrating Lauren's health, and helping to improve the potential of future premature infants. If you are interested in joining me for the Walk of America in Denver on April 28th at 9am, or you would like to contribute to the March of Dimes, (whose mission is to improve the health >of>babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality),>please check out my home page:>>http://www.walkamerica.org/khistand>>

(above) Friends Andrea, Vaike and Heather all spent an afternoon together with Kaia and Connor, sewing beanbags ('frogs') for a NICU gift.
(above) Heather and Vaike - seamstresses and their beanbags for the NICU
(below) a few of the 9 colorful, soft 'frogs' that were made! These beanbags are used by the NICU as bolsters and supports for preemie babies in isolettes. The frogs help little ones feel more secure and supported. Unfortunately, the NICU is very low on frogs and so we offered to make new ones as a gift for their use.

The next thing we wanted to do was thank the St Joseph's Hospital NICU for their care. They have not only been amazing for Lauren, but they have been great to our whole family. It's clear that NICU nurses and doctors must be skilled at treating not only their patient, but the whole patient family.

When Lauren is discharged, we wanted to give the NICU a thank you gift that they would need and use. So when I asked Lauren's primary nurse what the NICU needed, she showed me a 'frog.' In the NICU, a frog is a soft flannel or fleece beanbag that is used as a bolster for preemies in isolettes. The bolsters may be placed under a baby's legs or behind their back to help them feel secure and supported. Unfortunately, the NICU's budget tends to be taken up by more necessary items like stethescopes and cribs, leaving little left for blankets and frogs. So, I recruited 3 seamstress friends from my office and we spent an afternoon making 9 new frogs for the NICU! We shopped for some super soft fabric, ordered some plastic beads online, and then we turned Vaike's house into a Frog production line for an afternoon! Even Connor was able to help by filling the flannel sacks with plastic beads.

(below) Connor helps fill the sewn flannel and fleece bags with plastic beads (successfully spilling more on the floor than in the bags.)

Another thing I wanted to do was donate pre-term breast milk. I have been very fortunate to have such a wonderful supply, which I feel has truly helped Lauren grow and develop as well as she has these past few months. Many moms are not as fortunate, so I wanted to help out. The Mother's Milk Bank, located just next door to Lauren's hospital, screens, collects, stores and dispenses human milk by prescription only, to babies who have special health requirements for milk and whose own mothers are unable to provide it.

Although the screening process was extremely rigorous, including blood tests and a multi-page questionnaire about my health history, I was finally ok'ed as a donor. Just yesterday I showed up at the milk bank with two grocery bags full of donor milk and they were absolutely thrilled!!! "Your gift will help many babies around the country, Kaia." It felt really great to know that I could help. Thanks for sharing, Lauren!