After A Tragic Loss Jami Welcomes Baby Shailo

We have been blessed with so many friendships created through our business. One friendship we cherish is with Jami of the blog Colour Her Hope. We first "met" her when she was pregnant with her second child Eisley. She blogged beautifully about her complicated pregnancy with Eisley and we, along with her many readers, friends, and family, stood by her side as Eisley went to be with Jesus on September 14th, 2010. Jami blogged through her most intimate feelings of sadness, grief, and healing truly capturing the hearts of so many. We kept her in our daily thoughts and prayers and she continues to amaze us with her strength and grace. 

We were so happy to hear that Jami was going to be blessed with another beautiful child after the loss of her baby girl Eisley. She blogged about her pregnancy again and told us she wanted to purchase an Annie & Isabel hospital gown. She couldn't decide on her favorite, so she enlisted the help of her readers in this post here. As you can see from the beautiful moments captured below, the Anita gown was the winner as she welcomed baby boy Shailo Valour on November 8, 2011!

Here is what Jami said about wearing her Anita gown, 

                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                    "I felt so pretty in my Annie & Isabel hospital gown. And... oh my word did I receive so many comments about how beautiful and unique my gown was from family, friends, and nurses! One day I even had a nurse pull in a few more ladies just to show off my gown to them. Thank you so much for starting Annie & Isabel and blessing so many of us with your stunning designs."

-Jami of color her {hope}

Channelling The Animal Instincts of The Susan Hospital Gown For A Not-So-Easy Birth!

The labor and delivery of your first child is different for every woman. When you are about to deliver your first child, you can't exactly imagine how your body will respond to this experience and hope for strength and minimal discomfort. We received this very candid testimonial from Liz. She had two gowns for her hospitalization, which definitely came in handy for her extended stay in the hospital. We love when women pick our zebra Susan gown because it is fun and "wildly" chic, but we had no idea how much strength it would bring Liz during a difficult labor. We know that your birth journey was not the one that you expected and we appreciate that you were willing to share it with us. You are a true Annie & Isabel warrior!!

"October 12th, 2010...It's a day I will NEVER forget. My husband and I anxiously awaited the arrival of our son as we began the "birthing" journey at 6:30am. Upon arriving at the hospital I slipped into my Susan gown, smiled pretty for the camera (wish I would have donned some sort of makeup), climbed onto the bed and my pitocin drip began. Throughout the morning, as docs and nurses flitted in and out of my room, everyone commented on the Susan gown! It made me smile because I wasn't feeling the least bit pretty with the 55 more lbs. added to my former self, but hey, you will take a compliment when you can get it at this point."

"Little did I know that only a few short hours into being induced, my epidural would wear off, it wouldn't be fixed, and after nearly eight LONG hours of hard labor, I was rushed into an emergency c-section when they had to put me completely out. Honestly, the Susan gown gave me the strength to be the "animal" I needed to be to make it through those excruciating hours. I was not prepared for even the tiniest bit of pain (naive I know), but the gown's pattern kept me focused, fighting, and roaring (much to the dismay of the poor moms-to-be getting ready for their births. I am sure they found it hard to focus with my blood curdling screams). I remember, just before I slipped into "dream" land, one of the nurses said, 'that is the cutest hospital gown I have ever seen, I needed to ask her where she got it when she wakes up!' and she did..."

"Decker James Miller finally arrived at 7:39 p.m. but I didn't get to meet him until the early morning hours of the next day. Before he was placed in my arms, I asked my sweet husband to help me change from my Susan gown into the Anita gown. I didn't realize the immobility that comes with a c-section (again, naive) but it was so easy to take off and put the other one on, the snaps and ribbons were no-fuss. Once on, the Anita gown make me feel refreshed given the ordeal I had just endured; it actually made me feel pretty again and I was now ready to meet my son. And so, with the Anita gown on, and my son in my arms looking up at me saying, 'are you my mother?', the "parenting" journey began!

Love how Liz has already mastered the multi-tasking!

Sweet Baby Decker James fast asleep after working SO hard to arrive safely!

Becky Gives Birth In The Isabel Designer Hospital Gown

When we saw the maternity session on Brenda Bisharat's blog of this beautiful family... we were SO curious as to what Becky was going to have! As most of you know, between the two of us sisters, we have 6 boys! Actually, our parents have 8 grandsons because our brother John has 2 boys too! Every one of our pregnancies our Mom went out and bought a dress... well, now there is a closet full of girl clothes and we almost have a baseball team!!! Not to offend anyone, but when people are having their second baby... and of course they are having a boy after a girl.. or visa versa.. we can't stand when they say.. we have "one of each.. now we're done!" We both wanted big families.. so, really the sex of the baby didn't matter.. But, that takes us back to Becky... we were so curious when we saw her maternity session

with Brenda Bisharat that we were stunned to find out she and her husband weren't finding out the sex of the baby!!! How could she have such willpower???

We LOVE these maternity pictures and Becky and Brenda were so gracious to share them with us for our website. Her boys are so adorable.. and they have no idea what is in store for them...

A baby SISTER!!!!

Brenda Bisharat, voted Sacramento's #1 KCRA A list photographer, loves to photograph births. We were both fortunate to have her at the births of our last two boys. Brenda gifts one of our Annie & Isabel designer hospital gowns to her moms-to-be, making our gown a beautiful background to her amazing photographs.

Here is what Becky said about wearing our Isabel designer hospital gown,

"I love, love, loved wearing my SPECIAL gown. I received so many compliments from the hospital staff and visitors. Being a nurse myself, it made me feel so refreshed in a beautiful gown, and not a grungy old hospital gown that had been used a thousand times! When SHE came out it was a definite surprise and a wonderful moment wearing my Annie & Isabel gown holding my precious little GIRL! 11 weeks later I still look at her in shock that she is MINE."

Congratulations Becky! Thank you for sharing your wonderful birth story with us.

Testimonials Are Coming In...Read Chasity's Story

We recently received this testimonial from Chasity. She received her Isabel gown as a gift from her sister Natalie, who I work with in the ICU. We have received so much support from co-workers because we, as nurses, see what gets on those icky hospital gowns (you seriously do NOT want to know)! Now that there is an alternative... we are all looking for someone...(anyone!!)... to prevent from wearing the standard gown. Besides the "gross-factor" of the hundreds of people who have worn the standard gown before you, our gowns have all the features patients often wish they had... like your backside covered and a pocket. For Chasity, receiving her Annie & Isabel gown was such a wonderful addition to such a special day... it really makes a difference during the ups and downs of labor. Thanks Natalie for your support... and thanks Chasity for your glowing testimonial! Getting testimonials like this makes all our hard work worth every second. Congratulations on your beautiful son and family! Your girls are so precious and I am sure they will take good care of their new little brother. To read what Chasity has to say ~ click HERE.

Here is a sneak peak at her beautiful family.