The Loss Of A Mother, Friend, and Annie & Isabel Warrior

This past July we received a nice note from one of our customers, Maura, whose mother was battling leukemia. Maura purchased four Annie & Isabel hospital gowns for her mother who was in the hospital for two months over the summer due to many complications from her leukemia.

Christine in the ICU in her "Anita" hospital gown with daughter, Maura

Maura wrote the following email to us:

"My mother, Christine, is finally going home. Unfortunately she is not in remission so she will need more chemo but at least when she goes back to the hospital, she will have her four lovely gowns. She's finally up and having her dunkin donuts!"

"Thanks for everything. Seeing her in your gowns while in the ICU helped everyone see her as a person, not just a patient"

That last sentence from Maura really struck us because it is something we have heard from other customers and was one of the reasons why we felt having your own hospital gown was important when we started this business. It is easy for medical staff to treat every patient as just that…..a patient. Doctors get so caught up treating patients and trying to heal them, which is extremely important, however, sometimes doctors forget about the actual person behind that standard hospital gown. That is an easy thing to do when every patient wears the same standard hospital gown. Having your own, cheery, hospital gown not only provides comfort to a patient but it also often helps doctors and nurses pause and take notice of the beautiful person behind that beautiful gown.

Christine was a fighter! After two months in the hospital, fighting leukemia, renal failure, a bleed in her brain, and ICU psychosis, she was discharged just prior to the 4th of July with plans of what she was going to cook for the 4th of July celebration. You can see her fighting spirit in these pictures.

Smiling in her "Anita" gown with her "Isabel" & "Annie" gowns ready at the bedside

Unfortunately, a few weeks ago, Maura wrote to us to let us know her mother passed away December 3rd. Maura wanted us to know that her mother always felt special in her Annie & Isabel gowns. Maura plans to wear her mother's Annie & Isabel gowns if she and her husband have children in the future in order to help keep her mother close to her heart. LOVE THAT!

Christine & Maura celebrating Maura's special wedding day together

Maura, we are so sorry for your incredible loss. It is very evident how much you both loved each other and she will forever remain close to your heart. Big hugs to you and your family.

Photo Credit: Bharat Parmar Photography

Prayers Needed as Britney Receives Life Saving Stem Cell Transplant Tomorrow!!

Once again we are asking for everyone to send some good thoughts, prayers, and love to Britney (pictured below). She will be undergoing a stem cell transplant tomorrow morning to hopefully save her life! All hopes are that this transplant will provide a re-birth for Britney and we would love it if you would all leave messages of strength and encouragement on our Facebook post and/or on this blog post to help get her through this difficult journey!

Britney is 32 years old and has a rare condition called, Systemic Sclerosis or Diffuse Scleroderma. She has a very aggressive form of this disease which has caused her a lot of pain and suffering along with stealing over 50% of her lung function. In Britney's case, this disease is basically turning her skin and internal organs into stone. Diffuse Scleroderma is a progressive auto-immune disease which can sometimes have a prognosis of only 5-7 years from diagnosis. Britney has taken medications to fight off many symptoms and to help slow down the disease, but now she is in need of this stem-cell transplant to save her life.

We found out about Britney because some of Britney's great friends purchased the Annie gown to brighten her long hospital stay.  They picked the perfect gown for Britney! As the card that comes with this gown states, our great-grandmother, Annie, lived to be 98 years old, and was spunky, selfless, and fun…..qualities it seems that Britney shares.  We wish for you a long life, like that of our great-grandma Annie :-)

PLEASE watch this beautiful video of Britney explaining her diagnosis and her journey towards transplant. You will see what an amazingly strong person Britney is and why she needs the help of family, friends, and strangers to lift her up and encourage her through this difficult journey. 

Britney….you have a lot of loving people behind you and we know you are going to win this battle. Tomorrow, think of all of us singing "Happy Birthday To You" as you receive those cells that will restore you to better health!!. STAY STRONG AND FIGHT HARD BRITNEY!!

New Mother Fighting Hard After Heartbreaking Diagnosis

Two weeks ago we shared with you the story of Emily, whose mother passed away before she received her Annie & Isabel designer hospital gowns. Emily chose to donate the gowns to other well deserving women who were going through some life challenges. The first gown was donated to Jaime, who is battling cervical cancer.  You can read about Emily and Jaime here : "Passing Along The Love".

Yesterday we learned of a beautiful new mother who was diagnosed with brain cancer just two days after giving birth to her baby boy. Tammy was 5 months pregnant when doctors discovered she had a small tumor in her brain. They planned on waiting until after her baby was born to surgically remove the tumor, however, a few months later, Tammy started having more severe headaches. Another MRI was performed which showed that her tumor had grown by over 50% from the previous MRI. It was determined that Tammy needed to have surgery sooner rather than later. Tammy delivered a healthy baby boy on March 20th via c-section and two days later went in for surgery to remove her brain tumor. Unfortunately, doctors were unable to completely remove her tumor and the pathology came back that the tumor was an aggressive form of cancer called atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor. She was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer due to the fact that it had already spread within the brain and to her spine.

Tammy after surgery to remove part of her brain tumor

Tammy has been in the hospital since the birth of her baby, receiving chemotherapy and radiation. She has been unable to walk during this time but she has maintained a positive attitude and a will to fight as you can see from the beautiful smile in all these pictures.

Tammy showing off her sweet baby after a radiation treatment

Tammy is twenty-eight years old and needs as many thoughts and prayers sent her way to help her continue to fight through her treatments and kick cancer!

Tammy with her husband and newborn baby boy

When we heard about Tammy, we knew she would be the perfect person to receive the second hospital gown that Emily donated. Due to Emily's generosity, we will be able to help brighten Tammy's hospital stays a little more with our "Anita" hospital gown. Tammy picked out the Anita hospital gown herself and we think it is just perfect for her.  

The card that comes with our Anita gown says "May home always be your comfort". Our wish for Tammy is that she may become cancer free and soon enjoy the comforts of her own home!

Tammy, we are sending thoughts and prayers your way. Hold on tight to your sweet baby boy, your loving husband and family, and fight hard. Hopefully you can find strength from the many people that are already sending prayers your way.