Hand to Hold's official blog
For me, the hardest thing about being a parent to a special needs child is watching Caleb, our son who was born with VACTERL, go through what he has gone through: a NICU stay, four surgeries, numerous hospitalizations and ER visits, countless specialist appointments, lab draws, radiology tests, daily medications and treatments, therapy, etc. All [...]
Hand to Hold Executive Director and Founder Kelli Kelley shares new initiatives coming up in 2013 to provide more support and education for NICU families including unveiling the new NICU Resource Library for NICUs, For the Love of Babies fundraising and awareness campaign, and the impending launch of Hand to Hold’s first Facebook Chat. [Read more]
Melissa remembered clearly the moment she was about to give birth 14 weeks too early at 26 weeks. She recalled the face of the sweet nurse who firmly told her that her daughter needed her to relax and breathe. She remembered the exact topic of conversation that the nurses and doctors had while preparing her for surgery. And then her daughter Addie was born, crying like a newborn kitten with those soft little mews. After being checked over by the neonatologist and his transport team, Addie’s plastic isolette was wheeled into her mom’s recovery room for a moment before she left in an ambulance, without either of her parents. [Read more]
Our daughter, Kylie, was 10 weeks early. My pregnancy was successful until my preeclampsia diagnosis at 29 weeks. I had only heard of preeclampsia once, and didn’t know much about prematurity either. A friend had preeclampsia around 34 weeks gestation, but she brought her baby home right away, so my diagnosis didn’t worry me that [...]
Kylie doing the ‘carseat test’, getting ready to go home! I am so excited to be a parent blogger on Hand to Hold’s parent site, PreemieBabies101, and am looking forward to sharing my experiences, making new connections and being here to listen. I wish I had heard of this organization when my daughter was in the [...]
For the past month, you’ve seen a few changes happen here at PB101. We are excited to “officially” launch the new look and feel of this site, the parent blog for Hand to Hold, a non-profit based in Austin, Texas. Our mission and the people we serve hasn’t changed, but how we approach it has. This [...]
For our readers who live in the greater Austin area, Hand to Hold is hosting a reception this Thursday, April 26, 6-7:30pm at The Mansion at Judges’ Hill in honor of its friends and supporters. We would love to see you there! Jeff Garvey, President and CEO of the Austin Community Foundation will give the opening remarks. [...]
Hand to Hold is excited to announce the debut of our parent blog, Preemiebabies101.com. Whether you have a preemie and spent time in the NICU, have a special needs child or have experienced a loss, this blog reaches out to parents touched by all of these issues. We are looking to build a diverse base [...]
I don’t know that I have expert answers to any of those questions, but I can share what worked for me. My most important advice? Learn to forgive yourself. You will not win an award for “Best Put Together NICU Mom,” there is no such honor. Living the NICU experience was the hardest thing I’ve [...]
Hand to Hold is grateful for the dedication and passion in which Afton Mower founded PreemieBabies101.com. Recently, Afton generously gifted this blog to Hand to Hold and we look forward to hearing your stories, sharing advice and tips and carrying the torch of prematurity awareness with each of you. Hand to Hold was founded by a fellow [...]
Hand to Hold is a nonprofit 501(c)3 parent support organization and information and resources provided here do not intend to take the place of the relationship between a patient and personal physician.