Wow… did you watch ch9 last night?  the TV show Money For Jam?

I am in awe of Julia and what she is doing for premmie baby families all over Australia.  The show was great last night and if you missed it, here is a copy… its so inspring.  Julia does a wonderful job with www.lilaussieprems.com.au and so many families really benefit from this site.

8 years ago when I had my first premmie baby there was nothing like this… only American sites, so its great to see Australia, and Julia doing great things!

If you are a business and looking to put your $$$ into a worthy cause, please contact Julia at lilaussieprems … I know she would really support you as well.  If you are a friend, family or parent touched by the birth of a premmie baby… jump on the website and you will be so pleased to make contact with others in a very similar situation.  The support on this site is so friendly, and inspiring.

I was sitting there watching the show last night and almost spluttered out and choked on my cuppa.  There… the La Toriana banner was larger than life and my hubby couldnt believe it either!!  La Toriana’s very first television appearance!!  Thank you so much for that little plug!!! 

I am so honoured to be associated with you.  Read the blog post here about premmie support

Anyone that knows me will know I support premmie babies in lots of ways, but truly I have a few special people and what they are doing for families of premature babies is amazing.  Julia is one of these very special, inspirational and well deserving people.

At La Toriana we are all about supporting families of babies born early.  We have a wide range of premmie baby clothing, toys and accessories and continue to expand the range.  A % from all sales goes directly to a couple premmie groups and we will continue to support them.

see the La Toriana premmie baby clothing range online here. 

please indicate in the comment box if you would like my donation from your sale to go to lilaussieprems, National Premmie Foundation or Loddon mallee Kids.

 

 

 La Toriana’s Profile

At La Toriana we have a passion for kids fashion.

Our labels include, Alimrose, annieB, Lambykins, Princess Allure, FairyFloss Creations, Eternal Creation, Vanchi, TikiBoo Kids, Little Pearls for Little Girls, Tea Princess, Three Little trees, Tummbear, Dolly Up, babyjo bamboo baby wear, nest organics, early birds premature baby clothes, teeny weeny premmie baby wear, Oopsidaisi, boxy design, anamalz, Briit design, Bump buddy, cheeky little soles, Sounds for silence, Deshabille, eco peko, fINNIGAN fINN, gertie and me, Hey baby, huggalugs, i candy, lazybones, locolili, miniwhisk, mon tresor, nana huchy, nanny pickle, OOBI baby, penny scallan, Tabitha Emma, Tippie Toes, Princess Ratbag, Alannah Rose stationary, Mulberry Muse, Vintage Kid, Wild Things of Noosa, YmamaY, Xanna,  and so many more!

We have one of the largest and most stylish, affordable collection of premmie baby clothing, premature baby gifts and keepsakes available to buy online. If you have a baby born early, or are a friend/family looking to give a premmie baby gift… contact me and I can help

We showcase great Australian and New Zealand designers as well as neonatal and NICU appropriate baby clothing as well as organic premmie clothes and accessories.  Checkout our vast range of premmie wear and newborn baby items in our secure online baby boutique.  If you are looking for a  premmie baby keepsake doll, or organic baby wear for a bub that has been born prematurely, then you have come to the right online store.  La Toriana specialise in providing great quality, stylish and affordable designer label products for low weight babies and babies born early.

warmly

elizabeth xx

 

Jordan

  Bianca’s story   

My journey on this road to discovery, began early in 2001, when I found out that I was pregnant with my first child!  Like all expectant parents we were very excited.  I did all the right things, no soft cheese, no caffeine, no deli meats, no, no, no!

Everything appeared to be going fine, but on the 1^st of December at 6:55am, I received the most precious gift, albeit a little early!  Jordan Nicholas entered the world just under 7 weeks early, weighing 4lb 15oz (2230g)!  Fortunately, only a week or two prior to Jordan’s birth a new mother came to speak at our ante natal class, who had a baby born at 32 weeks gestation as well, so I was able to take strength from her story.  One of the things that rang true from her story to mine, was the day I left hospital without my baby!  She had said that the hardest thing that she experienced was leaving the hospital without her baby.  Right up until I left the hospital I was adamant that it was a good thing that the baby was staying behind, the hospital could provide the right care for him and it would give me time, in the ensuing weeks to properly prepare to bring a baby home!  Well, I did not think that you could feel so much pain and trauma, in removing yourself from such a small little baby, but I cried and cried!  I left my baby and my heart in that special care nursery!

After 3 weeks of expressing and keeping a constant vigil by my babies bedside from 6:30am to 6:30 pm (I may as well have been paid staff!), we were finally lucky enough to bring our baby home!  It was so exciting, daunting and mind blowingly amazing, it felt like Christmas morning everyday!

As time went on, my baby boy grew, he had a few small hiccups along the way, a couple of operations for ingrainal hernia’s, but was strong and determined.  As soon as he could roll, he was off.

Two months after my baby’s first birthday we found out that I was pregnant with our second child.  For some reason I knew that this time I would go early, but expected it to only be a month early!  Unfortunately at 25 weeks gestation I was in labour and sent to Melbourne.  I was optimistic, but did cry as I told my Husband on the phone what was going to happen.  I remained as calm as possible and told the midwives on the way out of the hospital that I would be back at 28 weeks and then 32 weeks and all would be well.  Fortunately or unfortunately I did make it past 25 weeks, but not past 28!  On Saturday the 26^th of July 2003, I again was in labour, my waters broke and a transfer was not an option.  My second baby boy was born breach by natural delivery on the Theatre table at 3:35pm!  He weighed 1120g (2lb 11oz), had an Apgar of 1 at 5 mins, which increased to 4 at 10 minutes!  He was one very sick little boy, but again, I was so proud, I thought that my heart would jump out of my chest!  The only times that I saw him on that day were, as they pulled one of his legs from me and then passed him to the waiting paediatric team, when they wheeled me to the Special Care Unit, where all I saw was medical people standing around a flat bed with lights.  My midwife, Rosie, gave me two photos that they had taken of my baby boy, even black and blue from the waist down I thought he was the most beautiful baby in the world!  I saw him for the final time, that night at around 9:30pm, where I was able to look at him and touch his precious little hand, through a perspex womb, just before he was placed into the care of the amazing NETS team who would deliver him safely to Melbourne.  As I was staring at him, in his new little home, we named him Samuel Thomas! 

The hospital stays were not the way that I had expected to bring my babies into the World, but they have taught me so much about my beautiful boys, myself, and the strength that we all carry within us!

When we finally returned home for good, I was fortunate enough to have been provided a fantastic Maternal and Child Health nurse who guided us through the joys of being a mother to prem babies, she also suggested that I attend a new playgroup especially for prem babies that was starting up soon, she assured me that I would love the woman who was starting the group up!  How right she was, the first time that I attended the premmie playgroup, I felt comfortable to be around other families who understood the sadness and happiness of the smallest milestones that many families, with full term babies often take for granted, like moving from a humidicrib to at ‘big bed’, graduating from gavage feeds to full bottle or breast feeds, and rooming in just before you get to take your baby home!!!

As time moved on, as it does, I become friends with Amanda, who set the group up and offered to help out in any way I could.  A stronger, more determined woman, you would be hard pressed to find, she became my mentor and dear friend, as we worked together to build Loddon Mallee Kids.  I am so lucky to have been able to work with and learn from one of life’s gems!

Today Loddon Mallee Kids, makes weekly visits to the Special Care Nurseries at  Bendigo hospitals’, has a weekly playgroup and is a founding member of the National Premmie Foundation.

 For more information please contact; 1300 prembaby or follow the links from www.prembaby.org.au

Loddon Mallee Kids is a not for profit parent support charity for people who have premature or sick children.  LMK runs weekly playgroup sessions for parents to chat with others who have had premature or sick children in hospital, to ensure that support for these families continues long after the children have ‘graduated’ from hospital.  LMK also does weekly hospital visits offering the opportunity for parents to speak with others who have been through the premature journey.  Parent gift packs are given to all families who have children in the Special Care Baby Units at Bendigo Health and Saint John of God hospitals, providing valuable information for parents who struggle to come to terms with the journey that they embark on.  LMK is a founding member of the National Premmie Foundation.

10 % of all sales from the premmie baby catagory at www.LaToriana.com.au will go directly to Loddon Mallee Kids and also  National Premmie Foundation til end of July.

Thanks Bianca for sharing.  I can personally vouch for the amazing work Amanda and Bianca have done with Loddon Malle Kids, and I feel extreemly lucky to be able to support and volunteer to help an amazing group.  Please jump onto both the above websites in support.

Warmly

Elizabeth xx

 Have you seen us on facebook? why not follow us!

La Toriana’s Profile
          

At La Toriana we have a passion for kids fashion.

Our labels include, Alimrose, annieB, Lambykins, Fairy Floss Creations, Eternal Creation, Vanchi, TikiBoo Kids, Little Pearls for Little Girls, Tea Princess, Three Little trees, Tummbear, babyjo bamboo baby wear, nest organics, early birds premature baby clothes, teeny weeny premmie baby wear, Oopsidaisi, boxy design, anamalz, Briit design, Bump buddy, cheeky little soles, Sounds for silence, Deshabille, eco peko, fINNIGAN fINN, gertie and me, Hey baby, huggalugs, i candy, lazybones, locolili, miniwhisk, mon tresor, nana huchy, nanny pickle, OOBI baby, penny scallan, Tabitha Emma, Tippie Toes, Princess ratbag, Alannah Rose stationary, Vintage Kid, Wild Things of Noosa and so many more!

We have the best online collection of premmie baby clothing, premature baby gifts and keepsakes too.  We showcase great Australian and New Zealand designers as well as neonatal and NICU appropiate baby clothing as well as organic premmie clothes and accessories.  Checkout our vast range of premmie wear and newborn baby items in our secure online baby boutique.  If you are looking for a baby that has been born prematurely, then you ahve come to the right online store.  La Toriana specialise in providing great quality, stylish and affordable designer leabel products for low weight babies and babies born early.

Molly-Rose,

our true little miracle

 (story by Shus, Mollys mum)

Molly-Rose was born on the 5^th February 2003 at 25 weeks (3 months early). 

We started IVF in August 2002, keeping a very positive and open mind as we knew it could possibly be a long road.  We took the normal course of drugs and then came the big day, they put two little embryos back and we all prayed hard for a positive result.  What happened next caught everyone off guard.  For some unknown reason I had a rare reaction to the drugs and ended up in ICU at Epworth hospital, with severe hyper-stimulation, my right lung had collapsed then my left lung partially collapsed.  My stomach had also started retaining fluid.  Throughout the next 8 weeks in hospital I underwent numerous procedures to drain litres of fluid from my lungs and stomach and had grown so big.  I was told I had a high chance of not keeping the pregnancy.

Finally after 2 mths I was released from hospital and had a wonderful few months, with continuous scans and tests and at every one, bub was still there, growing bigger every day, proving them wrong.  I willed her on with all my strength.  Then at 20 weeks the haemorrhaging started and I ended up in hospital for the remainder of the pregnancy.  Five weeks later at 25 weeks Molly-Rose decided she would join us and at 8.20pm on Wednesday 5^th Feb 2003 she was born weighing 880grams (less then a pound of butter), no bigger then my hand, amidst quite a commotion at Cabrini hospital.  The NETS ambulance arrived very shortly after and she was whisked away to the Royal Women’s Hospital.  My lasting memory of that was seeing this tiny little face peering out from a mass of bubble wrap tucked up inside an incubator.  I followed with my Hubbie driving the car, I don’t think either of us really understood what had just happened, we were in a sort of limbo.  Did I just give birth?

When we arrived at the RWH they took us to the Neonatal Intensive Care ward (NICU), and so began our fast track introduction to a whole different world.  A world of beeps and humming machines, good days and bad.  You soon learnt a good beep from a bad beep.  The NICU became a new home for us, the nursing staff our new family.   It took me 15 mins before I could approach Molly-Rose’s incubator, all I could see at first was a lot of tubes and wires, then somewhere under them all I made out the tiny form of our little baby girl.  My heart broke, what had I done, how could I let this happen, I kept saying sorry over and over again.  It was late and the blue glow from the lights on the baby next to us lit the area we were in.  The next 24hrs were critical for her and we sat by her all night, praying god would let our little girl live and give her the strength to battle this. 

Molly-Rose was in hospital for a total of 117 days (4 months), it was a mixed bag of ups and downs, good days and bad days, days when you couldn’t see that light at the end of the tunnel and days when it was quite clear.  In those fours months we went forward a few steps then back a few steps, then forward again. She had chronic lung disease, which was making it a little difficult for her to get off her breathing machine (CPAP), we had a few attempts then after 43 days it happened.  A wonderful day for us, then came the count down to her coming off oxygen, she’d become an “oxygen junkie”!!.  She caught golden staph twice, the first time she was very ill and we had her christened in the Incubator, the second time it was caught early.  The usual blood transfusions, heel pricks and IVs. She had ROP stage 3(eye disaese) and then developed haemorrhaging behind the right eye, which lasted for weeks, at one stage we were told she might lose her sight in it.  She was a terrible feeder, we would get so far and then end up back on a continuous feed drip, but finally after lots of perseverance from the staff we got the mls up, this meant she was very slow to put on weight, though to this day food is definitely not the centre of Molly-Rose’s world.  I will never forget the first time I got to hold her when she was 2 weeks old, an amazing feeling of love and admiration for this little person filled me.  Every little feature so tiny, except for two big blue eyes that spoke volumes to me. People asked how we coped, I told them that we drew our strength from her each day, as we watched with such admiration as she battled the odds, if she could do this we certainly could.  She was one month corrected when we finally took her home on the 4th June 2003 weighing 2656 grams.  The day we left was one filled with absolute joy, excitement and nerves, we’d always had someone around to guide us, from now on it was just the three of us, a family at last.  We stood at the entrance of the hospital door as we left, took one deep breath of fresh air and walked on into our new life together.

Since leaving we have spent a lot of time back and forth to the Royal Childerns Hospital, she has been back in hospital twice for respiratory issues and ended up back on oxygen for a while at home when she was younger but we did our best to get over each hurdle and move on.  We can never thank enough the staff from the Royal Womens Hospital and the staff at Frances Perry House where she spent time in the special care nursery, without their fantastic work and marvellous support I don’t know how we would have got through.  They are all our angels and we can never thank them enough.  The other prem mums I have made good friends with since leaving have been a great source of strength for me and I thank them all, they are a wonderful group of strong women, who all have amazing stories of their own to tell.  It was these great friendships and encouragement from the RWH that spurred us on to start Lifes Little Treasures (www.lifeslittletreasures.org.au) for parents like us, along with our online support partner

L’il Aussie Prems, we aim to assist as many families as we can.  We don’t want any parent to have to go through this experience alone.

Molly-Rose has grown into a most wonderful little human being, she is very active and social, always eager to discover her surroundings and meet new people, and she is now 6 years old and weighs 14 kilos.  She has just started school & loves it.  To watch her walk around as she busily gets on with her day is a constant source of enjoyment to me; I’m never far from a tear of Joy. 

Shusannah
Vice President
Lifes Little Treasures Inc
“Supporting families of premature babies”
Web: http:// www.lifeslittletreasures.org.au

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 

 Thank you so much for sharing your amazing story.  What a rollercoaster ride for you and those around you.  Your website is full of great support and news and a must for family and friends looking for ways to support those around them through the journey of the birth of a premature baby.

Warmly

Elizabeth xx

 Have you seen us on facebook? why not follow us!

La Toriana’s Profile
          

At La Toriana we have a passion for kids fashion.

Our labels include, Alimrose, annieB, Lambykins, Fairy Floss Creations, Eternal Creation, Vanchi, TikiBoo Kids, Little Pearls for Little Girls, Tea Princess, Three Little trees, Tummbear, babyjo bamboo baby wear, nest organics, early birds premature baby clothes, teeny weeny premmie baby wear, Oopsidaisi, boxy design, anamalz, Briit design, Bump buddy, cheeky little soles, Sounds for silence, Deshabille, eco peko, fINNIGAN fINN, gertie and me, Hey baby, huggalugs, i candy, lazybones, locolili, miniwhisk, mon tresor, nana huchy, nanny pickle, OOBI baby, penny scallan, Tabitha Emma, Tippie Toes, Princess ratbag, Alannah Rose stationary, Vintage Kid, Wild Things of Noosa and so many more!

We have the best online collection of premmie baby clothing, premature baby gifts and keepsakes too.  We showcase great Australian and New Zealand designers as well as neonatal and NICU appropiate baby clothing as well as organic premmie clothes and accessories.  Checkout our vast range of premmie wear and newborn baby items in our secure online baby boutique.  If you are looking for a baby that has been born prematurely, then you ahve come to the right online store.  La Toriana specialise in providing great quality, stylish and affordable designer leabel products for low weight babies and babies born early.

Organic Premmie Baby Clothing from Lambykins

Angela owner of Lambykins™ and Elizabeth owner of La Toriana® two country Mums, have been friends for over 20 years. Angela supported Elizabeth through three premature babies, two of whom became angels. Elizabeth vividly remembers the emotional rollercoaster ride and how it was traumatic enough without being able to find clothing made specifically for premmie bubs. She was told by a nurse to go to the toy store and purchase “cabbage patch” dolls clothes or have them specially made.

“It was the last thing I needed: my babies were vulnerable enough without seeing them in dolls clothes or oversized hospital-issued garments. I longed to have some nice clothes for my baby that actually fitted and were suitable for the NICU,” Elizabeth explains.

      Angela from Lambykins and Elizabeth from La Toriana.

Lambykins™ was established in 2004 and is renowned for producing a luxurious range of Australian-made merino blankets and baby clothing. After seeing what Elizabeth went through Angela was inspired to produce not just a gorgeous Organic Premmie Collection but a collection with meaning.

Each garment depicts a unique hand-drawn design and comes with a special poem on its swing tag that offers support and understanding for the parents of precious premmie bubs.

The designs, style, quality and attention to detail portray the core of the Lambykins™ brand. The Organic Premmie Collection of pants, jackets, sleeveless tops, bodysuits, hats and wraps come in 3 attractive ecodyed colours of blue, pink and ecru. The garments are safe to use in the NICU and come in true premmie sizes from 800 grams to 7kg (up to 3 months).

Elizabeth, a volunteer and sponsor of local and national premmie baby groups, donates a % of sales from her Premmie baby category.

La Toriana is fast becoming renowned for quality, stylish and affordable designer collections as well as for providing exceptional customer service.

 

Just released is gorgeous organic cotton `Premmie Nature Range’for precious premmie babies and newborns. Sizes will range from 800 grams to 00 (7kg)  

Contemporary prints beautifully handcrafted on pink, blue and ecru coloured outfits will ensure a special garment for your baby. Prints include leaf, giraffe, butterfly, flower, bird and tree designs.

I have never before seen such gorgeous quality of organic premmie baby wear and I love the designs… and am sure you will too.

Lambykins has researched well, and as such are able to provide quality premmie clothing.  Years before, premmie baby clothing was unheard of and we all were told to buy or make dolls clothes.  “How inappropriate”

now there is choice… and not only that there are affordable designer collections for new born babies and babies born prematurely.

Lambykins understand the need for specialised premmie baby clothing, and clothing that’s eco friendly to allow us to give our babies the best possible chance to their early start in life.  This new collection is great for newborn bubs up to 6 months, but also for small neonatal babies in isolette and cribs and have adapted clothing to suit the needs of specialise equipment in hospital and beyond.

Each garment comes with a heartfelt poem that’s so fitting of the moment and for our so precious premature newborns.  A perfect baby gift.

This collection helps La Toriana premature baby clothing section become one of the largest, stylish and most affordable collection of premmie baby clothing online!

www.LaToriana.com.au

Lambykins,

pure affordable luxury merino wool blankets for your precious baby.

La Toriana has stocked Lambykins from the very first day of launch, and have had a great following and repeat customers for this quality merino product. The Urban Blanket and Cap sets are a big seller this time of year and we are onto our second order already for this Winter. People have found out about what great balance of warmth whilst keeping a sense of style in these contemporary collection.

Made from 100% Australian Merino, made in Australia by an Australian company.

PERFECT!

Blanket is 80cm x 80cm

Cap size is approx 0 – 6mths

Merino Blankets

Wrap your baby in comfort and style with a Lambykins designer blanket.  We love they are fully machine washable.  A luxury soft baby blanket at an affordable price.  Makes a great baby gift, newborn baby present, or one just to keep for yourself.  So warm and soft…. BEAUTIFUL!

Choose from 4 contemporary designs in this merino blanket collection.  The Pram and Bassinet blankets on showcase at La Toriana are: Autumn Days, Galaxy, Sandy Beach (my fav) and Snowflakes.   There are limited amounts so be quick.

*****

ORGANIC BABY WEAR

FARMYARD COLLECTION

Lambykins have been long renowned for quality organic baby clothing and their newest collection of farmyard series is no exception.

Available in 000,00,0 are machine washable and can be tumbled dried.  This organic baby clothing collection is just a stunner.  You will love the earthy tones, and the country classic hand drawn pictures are pure delight for everyone.  Priced at only $29.95 for a designer organic baby wear piece is a great start at a wonderful price.

As many of my regular blog followers know, I am passionate about a few organic and premmie baby collections.  I am passionate about organic baby wear and premmie babies in general in any area!!!!.   That’s why we started the premmie baby catagory on our La Toriana website

Stay tuned as we are soon to showcase a gorgeous range of organic premmie baby wear that’s Divine!  I love the new clothing that’s soon to be released  and will tell you all more  about it soon… stay tuned.

In the meantime, feel free to check out our premature baby clothing in our premmie baby category on the website.  We have a collection of lovely prem baby clothing, comforters, positioning pillows, premmie baby dolls and more.

warmly

elizabeth xx