Here’s a picture of my second son, Owen. He’s gorgeous isn’t he? Of course I think that – I’m his mum!! He looks so cute, so happy, so plump and healthy. But look a little closer and you’ll notice the hearing aids and the fact that in this photo he was lying in a hospital bed awaiting a general anaesthetic to undergo a pulmonary valve balloon valvuloplasty. He had a rare syndrome called Leopard Syndrome (or Noonan Syndrome with Multiple Lentigines). In short, the valvuloplasty didn’t help, his heart was very very poorly and he died in April 2012 at 11 months old.

We are so lucky to have had our beautiful little guy at home with us, ‘healthy’ (of a sorts) for 8 glorious months before moving into hospital full time and then onto a children’s hospice (the fantastic Shooting Star Chase). We were able to get to know him, we got to cuddle him (A LOT), hear his infectious giggle, see his beautiful coy smile, take tonnes of photos, play with him, introduce him to his family, his big brother and for us all to make lots of wonderful memories. For those 8 months I could not be more grateful. Sadly, not everybody has a chance to make such memories. Shockingly, in the UK, over 100 babies die every week before, during or shortly after birth. Although the UK’s stillbirth rate has fallen slightly in recent years, it remains unacceptably high.

My good school-friend, Aoife Goldie, suffered such a loss of her first son Seamus, just 2 weeks after Owen was born. I remember finding out and clutching Owen to me so hard, sobbing, so grateful for the air in his lungs, not at that point understanding the full extent of his own health problems and untimely death waiting only around the corner. Attending Seamus’ funeral remains one of the saddest days of my life. I just somehow wanted to will it to not be true.

This year we should be celebrating Owen’s and Seamus’ 5th birthdays and what greater way to honour our beautiful little boys’ big days than by raising money to support two amazing charities. SANDS – the Stillbirth And Neonatal Death charity supports anyone who has been affected by the death of a baby before, during or shortly after birth. Tommy’s funds research into stillbirth, premature birth and miscarriage.

To do this I am partaking in Aoife and her husband John’s incredible 5 for 5 Challenge. Aoife and I have pledged to climb 5 peaks – the highest in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland:

Scafell Pike, England – 3209 feet

Carrauntoohill, Ireland – 3406 feet

Ben Nevis, Scotland – 4409 feet

Snowdon, Wales – 3560 feet

Slieve Donard, Northern Ireland – 2790 feet

I know my little guy will be with me every step of the way to keep me going when I will no doubt feel like turning around and heading home!

As well as merely climbing these mountains, Aoife and I both had an idea of taking a pebble with our little guys’ names on to the top of each peak and have extended this offer to anyone else who has lost a baby whether in pregnancy or after birth. You can read more about The Pebble Project here. Sadly there are many out there who have lost a child and as it stands we will have quite some weight in our rucksacks!!!

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.