REAL awards: nominate a health care worker that has impacted your life.

Save the Children has announced the first-of-its-kind initiative to bring attention to those who deserve it most:  our health care workers.

"Every year, awards are given to recognize the accomplishments of celebrities, actors, singers, athletes, and entertainers," said Mary Beth Powers, Campaign Chief for Save the Children's Newborn and Child Survival Campaign. "Alongside the Oscars and Golden Globes in January, we will begin to honor a group of people who rarely receive recognition or accolades -- health workers." 


 So if you know someone that you believe deserves this honor, visit www.theREALawards.com to nominate them!
If you can't think of someone, please take a minute to read the stories of those already nominated and vote for who you think deserves it most!

You don't have much time though! The voting ends this Friday, November 29th.








Save the Children is the leading, independent organization that creates lasting change for children in need in the United States and 120 countries around the world. Follow them on Twitter and Facebook.

I just want a baby

I know I shouldn't be jealous but I am.
Three of my friends have just found out on that they are pregnant.
I can't help but ache with jealousy. How I desperately want to see those two pink lines and make those phone calls to family. I want to feel my belly grow, feel those kicks, feel those hickups that used to drive me crazy. I just want a baby.

Something that really bugs me is even if I were to get pregnant this moment, my next child would be 4 years younger then Monkey. That is a significant difference! They would be far enough apart that they wouldn't even stay on the same school very long.

I never really thought hard about this until that day Monkey was swinging and had a rock in his hand. He placed the rock on the swing next to him, pushed it back and forth, and told it "I love you rock". How it broke my heart. I do want him to have a sibling. I do want him to grow up with someone that he can share memories with.

I just want a baby.

Then my fears kick in. What if I have a miscarriage? What if I can't get pregnant again? What if something bad happens?

I can't help thinking these thoughts. I know it's normal to worry about such things but after losing Corbin, I just can't have those "normal" worries anymore. I know that one in four women have a miscarriage and that out of the thousands of births each day, many of those babies have birth defects and complications. I can't unknow what I know.

I can only do my best to stay healthy and hope and pray that a baby is in my future.

World Prematurity Day: supporting preemie awareness.

One in eight babies are born too soon.
Worldwide that translates to 15 million babies that are born too soon.

You may know someone who experienced this, or you may have yourself. But what I bet you didn't know is that out of those babies who are born too soon, many of them won't make it.

I know a preemie named Eva. She was hospitalized at Ruby while Corbin and I were there, and our families were both staying at the Ronald McDonald house. I heard about them first because they had the running record for longest stay at the RMD House.

I soon got to meet the popular little baby girl that everyone couldn't stop talking about. She was tiny and fragile, but she also was a tremendous fighter. Watching her slowly grow and develop has been inspiring. Such a tiny little human that doesn't know the meaning of the word "fail", little Eva has truly had a very hard life, battling many health problems, but she also is full of life.



During this day, World Prematurity Day, our goal is to help spread awareness about premature birth but to also share stories of survivors, and to remember those who did not make it but will never be forgotten. If you have or know of a premature baby, please share your story here on this blog or on the March of Dime's Facebook page.

March of Dimes started this campaign in 2003 to raise life saving funds for education and research. They also started the Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait initiative to help support pregnant mothers by focusing on reducing deliveries before 39 weeks.

Watch this video below to learn how you can support this very important cause.




Giving Tuesday-lets start a trend!

I know you all have heard of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but have you heard of Giving Tuesday?




Giving Tuesday is a call to action. A call to stop spending, to stop taking, to stop trampling people on your way to the electronics section, and to sloooow down and give. It takes place on Tuesday, November 27th, right after the craziness of Cyber Monday.

"Wait, what?" you say. "Give?"
Yes my friend, it is a new and glorious idea that instead of spending the money we worked all year to earn on meaningless toys and objects that we soon bore of, that we all instead give back.

Give back to your community, give back to your friends and family through acts of kindness, give back to the world by volunteering or donating to charity. Take the time, effort, and money you would have otherwise used in the rat race they call Christmas shopping, and instead turn it around into something bigger and better.


Not sure where to start? Here are some ideas!


- Launch a campaign to support your favorite cause.

- Invite your company to match employees’ donations on that day.

- Invite your organization to commit a portion of proceeds on #GivingTuesday to your
favorite cause.

- Invite your local retailers to add a donation to purchases for a charity for
#GivingTuesday.

- Announce a donation or new initiative of your own on your blog or social media
channels.

- Partner with shops to donate a portion of sales to a charity on #GivingTuesday.

- Organize a local toy drive, yard sale, or bake sale to raise money and
goods for charity.

It is much easier then you think to make a difference and help start a movement. Let's show the world that we are not all greedy and selfish, that we all do care and we all do want to make a change for the better. This season isn't about spending money on gifts, it is about showing your loved ones that you care and that you are thankful. Lets change the way we show that love. Let's help grow Giving Tuesday into a nationally recognized holiday!


To follow Giving Tuesday, you can check out their Facebook page, follow them on Twitter @GivingTues, or follow them on Pinterest. Don't forget to use the hashtag #GivingTuesday when talking about this on Twitter!






This post has been inspired by my work with the Global Team of 200, a team of moms blogging for good.

Envious of death

I haven't blogged in quite a while, which I guess is good meaning things have been pretty mild around here lately...
until today.

I attended the funeral of my best friend's step dad and it was tremendously harder than I ever expected it to be.

It started when I walked in the church and saw the funeral director from Corbin's funeral. All I could think was "you buried my son", all I could see was him pointing out the casket we would bury Corbin in, all I could hear was the overused, hardly sincere "I'm so sorry for your loss".
I had to nudge around him to sign the guest book. I just wanted to yell "get out of the way!".

The service was nicely done and very emotional. I sat behind the family picking my nails, trying not to listen to the heartbreaking words of the songs played, or the verses the preacher read out, or how every. single. time I thought of why I was there I just broke down because I was envious of this man's journey to the other side.
"He gets to see Corbin."

I couldn't get it out of my head.

"He gets to hold Corbin."

"He gets to hold my son's hand and touch his hair and tell him hello."

I was envious of this poor man who battled cancer and lost. I was envious of his journey to Heaven. I was envious that he has moved on to a place of pure love and no pain. Oh how I wanted to follow him.

But I couldn't. So I just cried and cried, aching to hold my baby one more time. To look into his deep blue eyes and tell him I loved him.

After the heart wrenching burial, which included a military send off that had me bawling, I drove across the road to the baby cemetery.

I had no words, only tears. I hadn't cried that much and that hard in a long time.

I hurt for my friend and her family over their loss and the heartache I know they are feeling. But I also ache to follow him to that place...to where my baby is...to see my angel.