Add Your Baby to the Celebrating Sweeties Page this Month
October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. It is an incredibly important time to celebrate and honor little lives gone too soon. Here on Wanted Chosen Planned, we have a very special way to remember babies and older children that have died. It is called Celebrating Sweeties and it is a place where children can be recognized by name, birth and death date and a picture if the parents have one and choose to share it. If you would like your child to be a part of Celebrating Sweeties, please send this information to Alexis Marie at info@alexismariechute.com I am honored to post a new photo to the Celebrating Sweeties page today – and since Wanted Chosen Planned and Expecting Sunshine are experiencing a butterfly takeover for the month of October, I...
Read MoreWhy it is Important to Celebrate International Bereaved Mother’s Day
This Sunday, May 1, 2016 is International Bereaved Mother’s Day. I look forward to this date with mixed feelings. Maybe you do as well. Mother’s Day is a celebration, but for many it is a hard reminder of an incredibly painful time. The loss of a child is an experience I would not wish on my worst enemy, yet it is all too common. One in four pregnancies end in miscarriage. One in one-hundred-and-sixty end in stillbirth. More children are lost to SIDS and other causes during infancy. These deaths are more than just statistics. They are little fingers that will never learn about the world through touch. They are tiny eyes that wont have the chance to smile every time they see their Mama or Dada. They are giggles and first words and cries for attention...
Read MoreSharing Family Stories
Sharing Family Stories of Loss and Love… on Wanted, Chosen, Planned Sharing stories is so important. We live in a culture that gobbles up well-told stories – from novels to comics to movies and theatre. Stories are not only at the heart of our culture but also of our families. We share generational recipes, the history of our ancestry and time honoured traditions. So why is it hard for us as a society to talk about our losses? Being open and vulnerable with our feelings around love and loss can be incredibly healing. Bottling up emotions can lead to stress and the breakdown of communication. Authentic communication, from the heart, can be a comfort to the isolation of grief. Plus, our children matter, both those with us and those that live on in spirit....
Read MoreZuckerberg & Chan Pregnancy Announcement
I am always so impressed when people are brave in sharing about their losses. It is not an easy thing to do in our culture. On July 31, the Facebook founder updated his public profile with the news of their growing family. Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan’s pregnancy announcement confirmed the couple is pregnant – and with a baby girl, but also that they have been trying for years. Three miscarriages later, they posted a smiling maternity photo, Priscilla with a radiant smile and the glow of motherhood. For those of you not on Facebook, or may have missed the announcement, here it is. Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan pregnancy announcement: The announcement shares with the world some of the challenges and confusion around miscarriage. “You feel so hopeful...
Read MoreRemembering Ruby: Guest Post by Sara Kalke
I am pleased to introduce Sara Kalke. It is an honor for me to share Sara’s story here on Wanted Chosen Planned. I met Sara over three years ago shortly after her daughter Ruby passed away. We had an instant connection based on our losses and now I am proud to call her friend. I invited Sara to share her story here on Wanted Chosen Planned and I’m honored she agreed. Welcome Sara! Sara’s Story My daughter, Ruby Jayne, weighed 6 pounds 10 ounces when she was born. She had beautiful dark curly hair. She had ten fingers and ten toes. She had her daddy’s nose and my lips. She filled my arms just like a newborn should. She fit perfectly into the pink onesie I had ready for her in my hospital bag. She looked sweet and kind and full of the...
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