25 Days of Giveaways, Day TWO

I have read about and entered the 25 Days of Giveaways, hosted by the lovely Tina, for the past two years and this year, I thought I'd get involved myself. Time to give back, peoples!

I'm not overly crafty. Wait, I am not crafty At. All. So I won't be offering any schmicko hand made goods, sorry to say.

But I wanted to join in the fun anyway, and give something that means something to me, hopefully means something to you, and that will ultimately help others.

Hope was stillborn at full term. I think anyone who reads here knows that. And the main charity we have supported since she left us is the Stillbirth Foundation in Australia. We donate in her name each birthday and every Christmas. They are they only charity of their kind in Australia, working specifically to reduce the incidence of stillbirth by raising funds and awareness. They are the sort of charity you only ever hear about when "it" happens to you. And with six babies stillborn every day in this country, one in ever 140 pregnancies, the work they do is absolutely vital, though most don't realise just how much, often thinking "it will never happen to me". I know that's how I once thought. Oh, to be that girl again...

No one likes to leave hospital with empty arms. It is the most cruel trick, after having felt so full of life and expectation for so many months leading up to that awful day. So I will be purchasing a Stillbirth Foundation Stella Bear, in honour of the baby/ies you lost as my giveaway gift. I will then send it on to you, or if you wish, you can chose to have it donated to a local maternity hospital here in Australia to donate to the next woman to walk out of hospital with empty arms. Or, you could donate the bear to a hospital of your choice in your home town after you receive it. It is up to you. Keep it, or pass it on. Either way, it will help someone (or you) to know they are not alone and all the money that goes to the Stillbirth Foundation does make a difference. And please know, it doesn't matter whether you lost your baby to stillbirth or miscarriage or if your baby died at any time after birth - everyone is welcome to enter.

So please leave a comment sometime in the next 24 hours, before 9am Saturday 3 December (Eastern Daylight Savings Time here in Australia - which is 5pm on the east coast of the US, 2pm on the west coast of the US and and 10pm in the UK - on the 2nd of December - just to be confusing!) and I will randomly select a winner. Please let me know the name/s of the baby/ies you want me to purchase the bear for and make sure there is an email address attached to your profile so I can contact you, though I will also announce the winner in the comments and in a new post. Also, let me know about the charities, if any, you support in the wake of your baby's death.

Thanks for getting involved and I'll be thinking of you all, and your babies, this festive season.