Our second son, Ben, was born 10 weeks early on 17 December 2007 and I remember it all too well. It was the final weekend before Christmas, and we had done the usual last minute shopping for presents and were gearing up for a visit by the inlaws. Just a few more days of work to go for both of us...

 

but then that evening there were problems as Emma suddenly started to get some violent pains. This being our second time around we were cautious about going to the hospital for what may well just have been a false alarm. Should we wait ,or should we go just in case... we decided to go, and looking back had we delayed an hour or two longer then we'd probably have lost Ben and I may have lost Emma too.

 

Ben spent the next 5 weeks in special care in the hospital but all turned out fine, and 4 years on he appears perfectly normal, for which we will always be grateful - incredible really given he was supposed to be "cooking" for another 10 weeks. Needless to say it was quite a traumatic time for both us and him, and no-one was able to explain the reasons behind it - "just one of those things" (or Ben not wanting to miss out on Christmas perhaps).

 

But we are ever conscious that many others have similar or worse experiences, and our hospital's neo-natal unit had many 22+ week babies in it (they'd fit in the palm of your hand, to help put it into some perspective). So the work that Bliss does, in funding medical research into prematurity and sickness, providing training to medical staff, and providing support for the parents and families, is therefore close to our hearts. So we're very grateful for any support you might provide.

 

(And here's the website's standard blurb: 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 and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity. So please dig deep and donate now.)