Plates to share

So many plates have gone out since we are now servicing Baptist Little Rock, Children's, UAMS and St. Vincent's. We have received overwhelmingly positive response from the families and I hope to share a few of their stories. Firefly has been so awesome at working hard to get all the plates done in a timely manner. Since the holidays have begun, I have been going in and painting the plate rims for them to help speed up the process. It breaks my heart every time I have to paint another plate but it also makes me smile to know that these families have brought their plate in and they will have this precious gift for ever to remember their sweet little angels. Below are some pictures I took with my phone of some of the raw and finished plates.

This photo below is the back of the plate. Once the plate is painted they paint the donor's name on the back for the families. This is so important to me because I want all these families to know there are people out there that they don't even know that care for them. We are also doing in memory of and in honor of. People can buy a plate in memory of their baby or a friend's baby and their name would go on the back as well.

This is a raw plate that I was working on from home. Look at those tiny little feet.

This plate turned out so beautiful. The family lost twin boys. Their little feet were stamped at the bottom so there was so much space on the inside of the plate. Families can pay for extra painting. They chose to have the poppies painted on their plate along with Job 1:27 which say, "Blessed be the name of the Lord".

We can always use help with painting. The rim color is not hard but we need people who are artistic as the writing can be challenging. Please shoot us an email if you would like to be added to the painters list.

- Sarah

Catering To You

I was filled with joy and tears a few months back when Judy Adams from Catering To You called me. She had heard about Mamie's Poppy Plates and wanted to discuss some things with me. She was so touched by the idea of what I was doing and wanted to help in any way. While we were talking she said, "Sarah, I want to fund all the plates for UAMS and for Little Rock Childrens Hospital." Ya'll I almost went to my knees. I began shaking and tears of joy streamed down my face. Since then Judy has done so much for us. She has put us in touch with an amazing law firm that has taken us on probono so we can achieve non-profit status. There is way more exciting news coming soon. To say thank you to our sweet Judy Adams we had two plates painted for her to say thank you for adopting both hospitals. We hope that more businesses will adopt hospitals and we can be state wide soon.

Thank you thank you thank you Judy. You are such a special person that I believe God brought into my life since my painful loss of Mamie.

-Sarah

Thanks Beth at Firefly Studio for these beautiful plates. We love them!

Arkansas Hospital Association trade show

The Arkansas Hospital Association trade show back in October was a true hit. The interest and enthusiasm we received was both heart warming and proved that what we are doing is going to go so far. Thanks to everyone that came to help. We would like to give a special thanks to one of our biggest supporters, Judy Adams from Catering To You who helped us get our booth and made the yummy and beautiful petite fours for everyone that stopped by our booth.

Me and Britney

Me and sweet sweet Crystal.

The two Sarah's :)

First plate to go out

A sweet family gave their permission to share our experience with their little boy. It was my honor to give them the first plate and to take pictures like the ones that have been so precious to me. This sweet baby was full-term and stillborn. I remember so clearly getting the phone call about them. I was out on my morning walk when I received a call from Lynette, my awesome bereavement nurse. She said that there was a patient that had just delivered her stillborn baby the night before. My heart grew heavy and a huge lump formed in my throat. "What can I do Lynette? Can I please bring them a plate?" I said. She thought it was a great idea and so I made my way home and then headed to the hospital. We were able to get his beautiful little footprints on the plate and I took pictures of their sweet baby boy. Lynette asked me if I would like to go in and give the plate and pictures to the parents, and without hesitation, I said yes. Walking down that hallway, my stomach began to knot up. We opened the door and walked into the dark, quiet room. The silence and sadness in the room I know too well. I pulled up a chair beside bed and slowly handed over the plate and pictures. The mom and dad broke down into tears looking at their beautiful baby boy's prints. The way her husband rubbed her arm and kissed her head kept me at the day we held Mamie. Through their tears, there were a few smiles at how long his feet were and how beautiful and perfect his little face was. I stayed for a while and then made my way home, so happy that the first plate - the first official Mamie's Poppy Plate - was given to them by me. I know this plate won't heal them, but I know that seeing their boy's footprints and knowing they are not alone will give them a bit of comfort.

- Sarah

Remembrance Day

Today is Remembrance Day. It's a day that we light a candle as we
remember Mamie and so many other babies of friends who are joyfully
playing in heaven. Please light a candle in remembrance of those we
love and lost way too soon.

Here is the official site of Pregnancy Loss and Remembrance Day.
http://www.october15th.com/

I noticed another mom who lost a child put one of my favorite poems on her blog today. I have shared it before and would like to share it again with you all.

Go ahead and mention my child,
The one that died, you know.
Don’t worry about hurting me further.
The depth of my pain doesn’t show.
Don’t worry about making me cry.
I’m already crying inside.
Help me to heal by releasing
The tears that I try to hide.
I’m hurt when you just keep silent,
Pretending she didn’t exist.
I’d rather you mention my child,
Knowing that she has been missed.
You asked me how I was doing.
I say “pretty good” or “fine”.
But healing is something ongoing
I feel it will take a lifetime.
~ Elizabeth Dent ~

Painting Day

Firefly is so awesome. The initial idea was that our plates would all be black and white. I wasn't satisfied with that, as I wanted these families to have a more finished, personalized product. We decided a splash of color would be really nice. Mom, Britney and I went by and painted a couple of plates last week. Donations pay for the plates and the family gets to pick a wording paint color and rim color. If they want more, Firefly will take care of that for an additional charge unless the parents or a family member wants to paint the plate themselves.

This is going to be one of my sample plates to show families what else can be done to the plate.

This family decided they wanted the poppy flowers painted above their precious twin babies' footprints. I know it is going to be beautiful.

Plate delivery!

We had a fun packing party the other night and assembled 100 plate packages! 100 plates ready for delivery. We are excited that St. Vincent, Children's, UAMS and Baptist LR have their plates for any family who is in need. Meeting everyone at the hospitals was incredibly uplifting. The excitement and love that they showed us was amazing. Everything seems to be falling into place right now and I am so happy.

- Sarah

This is what the sticker on each box looks like.

Inside the box we have a 5x7 insert that is a more personal story about our loss of Mamie for the families.

Here we are on a wet day delivering our the plates to UAMS

We did a practice run on a sweet sweet baby that only weighted 13oz. We were able to get both a hand and a foot.

Packing Party

So much hard work has been done to get Mamie's Poppy Plates to a place where....there is so much hard work to be done! After researching and shopping for plates, boxes, brochures and mailers, we placed a huge order and had a ton of plates to put together for delivery to hospitals. We all worked hard and felt joyful that Mamie's name carries on and will help bring healing to other families in need.