Blog
Help a NICU Parent Today: Become a Volunteer Peer Mentor
“I don’t ever want another NICU parent to feel alone like I felt.” This is what Hand to Hold founder Kelli Kelley said when she started the peer mentor program that has been the driving inspiration behind Hand to Hold. Despite being surrounded...
Becoming a NICU Mom Made Me a Better NICU Nurse
The day my daughter was born took three years in the making. My husband and I struggled with infertility: seven IUIs (intrauterine insemination), a surgery for endometriosis, and one round of IVF (in vitro fertilization) later, we got our miracle we and our loved...
Grandparent Perspectives on Life in the NICU
I have always thought of my dad as being larger than life. He is 6’4” and worked in law enforcement. I never knew him to be scared of anything. But when my son was born 16 weeks preterm, weighing just a pound and a half, my dad who had come to my rescue so many...
New NICU Now Episodes Available! All About Bed Rest
We are excited to announce the release of three brand new episodes of the NICU Now podcast! These three episodes focus on bed rest: the challenges women face on bed rest, how they can care for themselves and how medical professionals can better support women on bed...
Overcoming a micropreemie’s feeding delays, one microstep at a time
Sometimes when you’re trying to get your former micropreemie to advance with a life skill, it pays to try something weird. For example, putting banana in your ear. I brought his favorite stuffed toy, Blue Bear, to the table and made him say, “I’m going to chew...
Black Breastfeeding Week: August 25-31
August 25-31 marks the 6th annual Black Breastfeeding Week, a week established to raise awareness of the gaping racial disparity in breastfeeding rates. Recent CDC data show that 75% of white women have ever breastfed versus 58.9% of black women. Common...
Exclusive Pumping: A Different Perspective on Breastfeeding
I am all for breastfeeding. I am amazed by the life-saving power of breast milk, that I have witnessed first hand. I know that breast milk is both nutrition and medicine especially for the tiniest of babies. I understand why it is referred to as liquid gold. And...
Northbound and Down
As a child of the 70s, some of my earliest movie memories are of Smokey and the Bandit. The theme song “Eastbound and Down” has served as my anthem this summer as our Development Director Jennifer Hayhurst and I made twice weekly trips to Dallas for the first seven...
7 Ways to a Successful Road Trip with a Medically-Fragile Child
My son is the inspiration behind our switch from air travel to road trips. At first I dreaded the idea of spending 18 plus hours trapped in the car with my kids. But now we've found our jam, and I actually look forward to our road trips. We have lots of memories...
“Ready…Set…GO!” Kindergarten Readiness and My Preemie
“Mama, are the cupcakes ready?” my former 29-weeker, now 5-year-old son, asks for what must be the thousandth time in the past 5 minutes of the 20-25 minutes it takes for these darn cupcakes to bake. I try so hard to not get annoyed. Because first, let’s be honest,...
There’s Still Time to Make the #FutureSoBright for NICU Families!
August is here, and we're sliding into the last month of summer with our green shades on! There's still time to participate in #FutureSoBright, our fun, interactive campaign to raise awareness of the amazing and bright futures NICU babies and NICU families have....