A mother whose own son arrived 10 weeks early has created a range of milestone cards to help parents of premature babies to celebrate their children's successes.
Amy Purling's son James was born in February 2016 at just 30 weeks, weighing 1.5kg. He was born with a life-threatening platelet disorder which meant his blood wasn't clotting, causing him to spend the first few weeks of his life in a neonatal intensive care unit.
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'Leaving the hospital without your baby is something I wouldn't wish on anyone,' Amy told the Daily Mail. 'You feel empty, you feel guilty, like you've failed your baby somehow.'
After undergoing transfusions, James' condition improved, and Amy began to record all of the milestones she and her son went through together, from the first time he was placed on her chest to his first bath - 'something we were able to do in the hospital, and it was the first thing we were able to do independently as parents,' she noted.
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The experience made Amy realise that there were many other mothers going through the same trials with their premature children - a thought which gave her the idea for her business, Miracle Mumma milestone cards for fellow parents of premature babies.
The cards give parents a way to document their little one's achievements, from wearing their first outfit to battling through their first operation, or being breastfed by their mothers for the first time.
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Amy sells the cards online, and says that her site and Facebook page have since become an incredible support community for mums and dads who are going through the journey themselves.
'I have made it my mission to help others who will go through the same, and I believe these milestone cards are helping to make this frightening time just a little bit brighter for these families,' she added.
