I'm Jessica Villmer, an Independent Consultant with Usborne Books and
More and Mama to a NICU graduate!
When my fifth child was born via emergency C-section, due to
preeclampsia and low birth weight, she spent one month in the NICU of
Stormont Vail Health in Topeka, Kansas.
While one month is not a very long amount of time in the scheme
of a lifetime, it has long lasting effects on a family! With children
at home, it was very difficult to spend as much time as I wanted with
my newborn. The times we got with her while she was in the hospital
are pretty traumatic. Being hooked up to tubes and IV's, while laying
in a clear box is not how you ever imagine seeing your newborn baby!
I set up this Book Drive to send a little bit of love to these
families in similar situations. While in my baby's room, besides
holding her and pumping breast milk as much as possible, we passed the
time by reading out loud to her.
I think it would be amazing to place a storybook in each room for the family to keep from this unique time. I also think an activity book for a sibling would be a nice gift, because we all know they are facing this same trauma with a sibling not arriving at home like they had been planning.
Would you join me in blessing NICU families at Stormont Vail in Topeka? Would you help provide a positive memory to these families experiencing this kind of trauma? Books have a way of bringing people together. Stories have a way of growing old with us and reminding us of who we read them with. Reading aloud to babies is not only good for the baby, but for the caregiver as well. It bonds us.
This fundraiser is in honor of our NICU warrior Jesa Ruth-Anne :)
