Loved Baby Shower| One BIG Way to recognize National Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month

 

Miscarriage, Ectopic pregnancy, Molar pregnancy, Stillbirth, Fatal Birth Defects, SIDS,Fatal Accidents

Oh, my heart aches for all these families.

October is Infant & Pregnancy Loss Awareness Month — set aside by President Ronald Reagan in 1988,  as a time to cherish these precious babies and show love to their families.

In memory of these tiny souls- who were wonderfully and fearfully made, I invite you to participate in the worldwide Loved Baby Shower.

Would you join us? The Loved Baby Shower is an opportunity to honor babies who now reside in Heaven by helping a precious child in need.

Each year, in the United States alone, there are 26,000 stillbirths and over 4,000 infants, under the age of one, who die unexpectedly. Statistically 1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage (the death of a baby before 20 weeks gestation).

This is a heartbreaking number of families who mourn the loss of a child.

I’ve found that many hurting mamas and daddies turn their pain into a passion for helping others. Grief gives us the gift of empathy, doesn’t it?

Over time, compassion fills our souls– compassion for other grieving families and compassion for children in need.

The pain doesn’t subside, but–as author Suzie Eller says, our mended souls go from needing help to giving help.

A few months ago, a member of our Loved Baby Christian Pregnancy Loss Support & Encouragement Group wrote she was hosting a baby shower at her church in honor of her baby who passed earlier this year.  The items collected would be sent to a maternity ward in Africa. Isn’t this lovely?

Her generous spirit encouraged me to host a Loved Baby Shower during the month of October.

Would you care to join us? Or host your own Loved Baby Shower?

WHAT IS THE LOVED BABY SHOWER?

Loved Baby Christian Pregnancy Loss Support & Encouragement  group is pleased to partner with  Bethany Christian Services–the leading agency for adoption, foster care, and refugee services–to host an online baby shower to bless children in need.

This year we will be showering blessings on refugee children, including those affected by the Syrian Refugee Crisis. Millions of refugees have been forced to leave their homes due to war and oppression by ISIS. This is the biggest refugee crisis since WWII.

Did you know that many of the refugee children and their families are now living in the United States?  Some of these babies are now in foster homes.  They’ve lost their homeland and, in many circumstances, their parents.

In memory of our Loved Baby let’s help these little ones.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?

Purchase an item from the list and ship it to the address below. Perhaps even organize your church or a group of friends to help.

ITEMS REQUESTED:

• all size diapers

• sippy cups

• bottles

• pacifiers & teething rings

• children’s books & activities (playdough, music cds, etc…)

• children’s bible

• stuffed animals

• warm snow suits

• car seat cocoon/ cover

• stroller blankets

• infant car seats (must be new)

• booster seats

• pack & plays

• diaper bags

• strollers

• wraps/infant slings

*Please not that these children have been placed in Michigan. Warmth is a necessity.

PLEASE SEND ITEMS TO:

Collect your items and ship OR order online and have the items shipped to:

Bethany Christian Services Of Michigan

Refugee & Immigrant Services

C/O Katie Vriesman | Loved Baby Shower Project
1050 36th Street SE Suite 400
Grand Rapids, MI 49508

IF YOU ARE MAKING A DONATION IN HONOR OF A CHILD:

Perhaps you are reading this and you haven’t been touched by pregnancy loss or infant death—but you know someone who has. Consider making a donation in honor of this baby. Send a card or make a phone call to the bereaved parents & let them know that you made a Loved Baby Shower donation in memory of their baby. Let them know  you remember and love them!  Use the child’s name in conversation. Please share this graphic with the family if you so wish.

IF YOU HAVE BEEN AFFECTED BY LOSS WE INVITE YOU TO JOIN OUR SUPPORT GROUP:

Loved Baby Christian Pregnancy Loss Support & Encouragement

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

#livefree

Much love,

the loved baby sisterhood 

JOIN THELoved Baby Shower Facebook Page

October 15^th has been set aside as a specific day of remembrance.  It is on this day that parents light candles, participate in beautiful ceremonies, and grieve for and cherish the child that was wonderfully and fearfully made. 

 

About Sarah

Sarah Philpott, Ph.D, is the author of the award-winning book: Loved Baby: 31 Devotions Helping You Grieve and Cherish Your Child After Pregnancy Loss. Her newest release is The Growing Season: A Year of Down-on-the-Farm Devotions. Sarah lives in the south on a cattle farm where she raises her four mischievous children and is farm wife to her high-school sweetheart. Sarah is founder of the Loved Baby support group and #HonorAllMoms Mother's Day movement. These days Sarah happily chooses to be a stay-at-home mom and spends her days cleaning up peanut butter & jelly off the counter, dreaming of traveling the world, and chasing her children around the farm. She doesn't believe in sharing desserts. Life is too short to share chocolate! Sarah is a lover of coffee (black), rocking chairs, the outdoors, and Hemingway. View all posts by Sarah