So how did it go for everyone? My husband and I seperated at mile 5...it was necessary before we killed each other...(I walk a little on the slow side )...My dh crossed the finish line 45 minutes before I did....but, he came back for me....awwww how sweet!
So, I had to look for the meaning of our seperating during our walk...for me, I guess in the beginning I needed his support...i needed that hand to hold. But then there comes a time, when you just have to go it alone...it just makes you stronger.
It was a good walk...I'm still recovering from Sunday...it was wicked cold outside...But, together we raised almost $1500 within 2 weeks. Woo hoo! I was just so overwhelmed by my family and friends generosity...I look at our web pages and I still can't believe it.
I've attached a pic of me, crossing the "finish line" please note that there is no one, other than DH, in view...yep, im that slow!! And a pic of THE hat that saved my life...it looks stupid, but its oh so warm!! LOL I wore it this past winter to the office...My boss just gave me one of those looks...yes, oh so professional!! LOL
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Our sweet angel, Mohamed Matthew Raymon Illyas,
born and at rest on November 30, 2004.
Lived only 30 precious minutes...(IC at 20 weeks) Forever in our hearts, Together in our dreams.
We now live our life for you. We love you Matthew, our little Angel.
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For me, it went really well. My biggest problem was that I could NOT sleep the night before. I was soooo nervous, for some stupid reason. Therefore, I walked the 6 miles on nearly NO sleep. I was pretty proud of myself for making it through. I told DH *several* times that if he wanted to walk faster, he could go faster without me. I was getting really annoyed with him pretending the thing was a RACE. But I insisted on pacing myself and it paid off. I was really slow in the beginning but got faster and faster as the walk went on. I think guys can be really competitive and he didn't want to be the last one to finish. We raised about $700 which is great for me. I HATE asking people for money, and since DH's family is overseas, we didn't ask them (though next year we WILL). Next year I think I will do a team and get my whole family (mother, brothers) involved.
It was emotional - seeing all the preemies and other babies there. Even the ones who weren't healthy made me ache for Gabriel. I wish he was here no matter what. But it felt REALLY REALLY good to have done it. I'm glad I could do something.
Did you get a t-shirt with a pink and blue US on it? I really like it, especially that it is long sleeved. I also got an embroidered fleece blanket. I'll always look back on it as a great memory.
__________________ Adrianne 31, DH 44 - married 6/01 - 2 DSDs (13 & 15)
Gabriel born 19w5d 11/15/04 due to IC. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
My walk is on May 15th. I'm glad it's later, since the weather will be a little warmer (I hope). I'm nervous, too (I know that's dorky). I've raised $350 so far, but that doesn't include my Mom. Hubby raised $200. He did NO fundraising - that's all donations from my Mom's job, so I don't think that's too bad. I'm wondering how we'll handle the walk - I REALLY don't want to be stuck walking next to him for 5.5 miles when I can barely be in the same room with him for more than a few minutes . And I'm also worried about seeing the babies - I was passing the park the other day while a kiddie soccer game was going on, and I had to pull off the road and watch the kids, wondering if Rivi would have played.
Adrianne, I didn't see anything on the list about a blanket - how sweet that they gave you one! I wish my "local" chapter was more supportive. The other nearest chapter is actually closer to my house, so I think I'll work with them next year. Hopefully they'll be more involved.
__________________ Dominici was born May 2006!
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Miracle Baby Boy Rivelino, born too early to live on October 6, 2004 at 24 weeks and 6 days. Never to be forgotten, always to be remembered, forever my source of inspiration.
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I totally understand about the RACE thing...My dh was just so antsy watching people, well actually almost everyone, pass us by. I knew that it would happen with him. Men! The night before, we went to Target and I was looking at the mp3 players...my dh wanted to know why I wanted one, and I said "do you really think I want to hear you telling me I walk too slow for three hours" He thought I was joking, but i was not...but needless to say, i did not purchase one, and had to hear him go on for a good 2 hours.
I was quite emotional before the race....I caught myself staring at families with their little miracles, just in awe. As the race started, i had tears in my eyes, but i quickly realized that i was not alone...dh and some other people around me had them too. Then as we left the building, they had 12 bagpipers playing to send us on our merry way and i almost completely lost it! And I'm not even Irish/scottish! Good thing there was a girl clown there who just cracked me up. I think she saw me coming!
Unfortunately, since I took my sweet time to finish the walk, by the time we got back to the t-shirt counter, they were out of goodie bags, t-shirts, sweatshirts, and blankets. So MOD said they would mail the shirts and blankets to us. I have no idea why they didn't give them out in the beginning of the walk.
oooo gotta go back to work!
__________________
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Our sweet angel, Mohamed Matthew Raymon Illyas,
born and at rest on November 30, 2004.
Lived only 30 precious minutes...(IC at 20 weeks) Forever in our hearts, Together in our dreams.
We now live our life for you. We love you Matthew, our little Angel.
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Ours will be the 14th. Again, I'm glad the weather will be warmer than yours!
I'll be volunteering that morning from about 6AM on, so we'll really be wiped out, just like last year, after finishing the walk as well as working the registration tables. I wanted to mention that last year, our first, the emotions happened at the end when there were big signs, I think pieces of plywood painted white, that people were supposed to write on... they said "Who are you walking for?" and there were babies' names on them from losses up to 25 years ago. I lost it. The photographer for the event happened to be there at that moment and caught my reaction on the official photos for the day, so I'm in a slide show that is used around here to promote the event.
So far, I haven't raised nearly as much as last year, but my hands are fuller than they were. I need to send a reminder email to the people who haven't responded yet.
Good job, everybody!
Sheri
__________________ Metformin 1500mg, Yasmin, managing IR/pcos with lower carbs
First pregnancy ended at 23 weeks due to incompetent cervix.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Mary Catherine will be in our hearts forever, November 28, 2003.
Second loss March 9, 2004 at five weeks
Third pregnancy, Cerclage at 13w
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Fourth pregnancy, Cerclage at 13w
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But I made it. We received special medallions because Rivi was a preemie who didn't make it. I cried when they were presented to us. There were very few people walking for a baby who died, which is good in a way (because so many lived), but sad, too.
I wore the wrong sneakers (half asleep this morning, I grabbed the wrong ones), so I have blisters on my blisters. I cried off and on through the whole walk. There was a couple behind us the entire way, and they had a toddler in a stroller. About halfway through, he asked why they were walking so far. His Mom told him, "Because your big sister can't. Remember, we're walking so that other babies don't die like she did." Then I REALLY cried. I'm so glad he'll always be part of honoring her memory.
There weren't a lot of babies - mostly 5-6 year olds who'd been born too soon. So that didn't bother me too much. I was amazed at how well-behaved all of the kids were. None of them complained about walking so far, none of them were loud or annoying.
Before we started walking, I was by the registration booth, and a woman came up to me and said, "Have you already registered?" I thought she was part of the registration team, so I said yes. She asked if I wanted information about other charities involved with the March of Dimes. I said yes, and she handed me an ANTI MARCH OF DIMES pamphlet! Some piece of paper that went on and on about how the March of Dimes doesn't care about animals and promotes animal testing. ARGH!!!
It had already been an emotional day (only an hour into it at that point), and this B***H is going to give me crap while I'm wearing a t-shirt with a picture of my baby who DIED? I wanted to hit her. I mean, I REALLY almost hit her. Instead, I gave her a speech. I threw her pamphlet back at her, and I said, "I won't take this. The March of Dimes saves babies' lives. My son may have died, but they're the only reason he had a chance. I think you're out of line, and it's incredibly obnoxious to make an emotional day much harder on families who are here supporting each other." Then she ROLLED HER EYES AT ME! And I REALLY, REALLY almost hit her. Instead, I found one of the people working there, who said that the police had been called because there were three of these people who wouldn't leave. They also went along the walk route last night and stole all of the signs. WTF? I love animals. I regularly contribute to the Humane Society. Animal Planet "cop" shows are my favorite tv programming. I buy only toiletries that HAVEN'T been tested on animals. I only eat cruelty-free meats. But you have to draw the line somewhere. To me, that line is when people's lives need to be saved. If this woman, or one of her loved ones, develops a horrible disease, would she deny all treatment that had been tested on animals (which would be ALL of it, since that's how ALL research is begun)? Of course not - she'd just say "Do it."
All I remember about the pamplet is that the biggest charity mentioned as an alternative for donations was Easter Seals (they don't test on animals). Duh - they treat kids who were already born with disabilities. They do NOTHING to prevent kids from being disabled in the first place by prematurity. How is that a true alternative? I'm still fuming.
The good thing is that I spoke a few times with the head of our county chapter. I didn't even know there WAS a county chapter - I'd been going by the March of Dimes website, which referred me to the state chapter. Who didn't return any of my three voicemails about volunteering on a regular basis. I'd gotten pretty annoyed about being ignored, but apparently none of the three people ever forwarded my messages to the correct person. She said she'd love to have me volunteer - they do stuff year round, and they meet once a month (only 10 minutes from my house). Whoo-hoo! I get to volunteer, finally!
Viv, we had people from PETA protesting at my walk too. I was prepared actually, because I work on a college campus. A few weeks before the walk, there were flyers posted to recruit people to come protest the walk. I was SO ANGRY that I tore down the flyer right then and there. I didn't care who saw me. I then went to the bathroom and cried my eyes out. So, when I saw them at the walk, I just ignored them. Those people really are wackos and not worth an extra thought.
Viv,
Our chapter has handouts to give people who have questions about animal testing. I would have been cheering for you if you had knocked some sense into that gal. I'm sorry she put a downer on your day. I'm glad most of it was better.
The walk here was good and went pretty smoothly. Brad and I manned the "family teams" tent so that families could make signs about the babies they were honoring. Very few people did it. I imagine next year we'll get the word out sooner. Anyway, we were worn out before even starting the walk, as I had been carrying Duncan in the front pack all morning, so we took the short route for the walk. I'm glad you'll get a chance to do some volunteering from now on, but it sure makes the walk day a major event! We had nice cool weather, fortunately, and dry.
I felt bad that I didn't raise as much this year, though a few more donations are probably going to roll in this week. I think I got $635 so far. There's always next year. Lately I've really been missing Mary Catherine, because I love little walkers, toddling around and exploring their world. The walk made me think of her constantly, of course. Seeing the preemies there naturally made me think of what she might look like if she had somehow lived. It is such a gloomy feeling, it puts a sick rock in my stomach. And then I have my jumbo boy hanging on my belly in the pouch thing, the same size as the one year old who was born at 27 weeks, and I just don't know what to feel. Sorry to the family who had to go through the nicu experience. Sorry to Duncan for dwelling on his sister. Sorry for Mary Catherine because we weren't able to save her. Just sorry. I wish they would figure this stuff out! So I'll keep working.
__________________ Metformin 1500mg, Yasmin, managing IR/pcos with lower carbs
First pregnancy ended at 23 weeks due to incompetent cervix.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Mary Catherine will be in our hearts forever, November 28, 2003.
Second loss March 9, 2004 at five weeks
Third pregnancy, Cerclage at 13w
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Duncan 2/11/05, 9lb 3oz
Fourth pregnancy, Cerclage at 13w
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You gals did so great! I'm so proud of all of you!
I guess I'm doing my part by being in the study I'm in. Helping to see if the omega-3's added with the progesterone helps prevent PTL more than just progesterone.
I might not walk 5 miles, but I get a sore butt every week!
I hope that this baby of mine won't be a preemie, and will be born on time (or at least close enough to on time to not have any complications. But I feel better knowing there ARE people out there who care, and there is plenty being done to help prevent him from being born too soon.
Like Aviva and Sheri, I hope I'm also a success after loss story.
And I hope all the others on here are, too!
Keep up the good work! and remember if you do get pg again, try and find a study to join. It's another way to help!
Adrianne - what is WRONG with these people? It's funny that I noticed something, though. At my last therapy session, we talked about how I hate being hurt so much that I tend to go straight to pissed instead. That's what happened with the wacko (although this situation warranted it). Weird - guess maybe I'm getting my money's worth after all!
Renee, you're funny. I'll bet the Omega-3s do make a difference. They actually help regulate hormones and help with PCOS anyway (I take them every day). I'd imagine they'd help regulate pregnancy hormones, too.
Sheri, ((HUGS)).
I went back and forth yesterday, too. I wondered whether I'd even have been involved if Rivi had lived (I found out about the MOD from you on THIS board). I wondered if he would have even been aware of the balloons or the clown at this point. I wondered if he would have ended up with long-term disabilities (not that it would have made a difference to me). I wondered why so many of these other babies lived, and he didn't (which made me feel a little b***hy, but oh, well. At the same time, I was overwhelmed by the work the MOD has done, the number of babies saved. Everyone was so supportive. My t-shirt was a HUGE draw (it has his NICU pic on it and 36 babies' names on the back). I got so many hugs.
The ambassador family had their preemie (26 weeks) at the same hospital where Rivi was born and died. They went on and on about how great the NICU was. Funny how different our experiences were - all I remember is the doctors shoving "do not resuscitate" orders in my face every time I went to see my baby. This was even after I explained to ALL of them that we had to try everything - I wouldn't give up on Rivi as long as he was fighting. (There were two nurses who fell in love with his dimples and were willing to go to the ends of the earth for him). I will NOT have another preemie at that hospital. My doc's affiliated there, so a full-term baby would have to be born there. But for NICU, I'll go to another hospital (my mat/fet doc is affiliated at both hospitals). I think that Rivi might have felt that negative energy, and that isn't the experience of this world I want any baby to have.
Wow! Those are some experiences! What's the deal with the wackos from PETA? Why would they be protesting? I guess we didn't have demonstrators...at least none that I could see.
Diana, the March of Dimes funds research at various facilities, some of which may test on animals.
What nobody seems to get is that if we had never tested on animals, we wouldn't have ANY of the medical treatments we commonly use today. Vaccinations - tested on animals...cancer treatments - tested on animals...AIDS treatments - tested on animals. Unfortunately, there is a cost to progress. I guess we should all just die and let the animals have the planet?
Sorry. I'm just still really annoyed at the sheer nerve of that b***h. I should've hit her.
WALKAMERICA...how did it go? 
)...My dh crossed the finish line 45 minutes before I did....but, he came back for me....awwww how sweet!
. And I'm also worried about seeing the babies - I was passing the park the other day while a kiddie soccer game was going on, and I had to pull off the road and watch the kids, wondering if Rivi would have played.
An emotional day! 
I'm still fuming.
