I have to share this story with you!! A good nursing friend was recently in the hospital for pre-term labor. Thankfully she is doing ok but is now on bedrest for 3 months. She purchased the Elizabeth gown awhile ago for her upcoming birth. She is honoring her mother who is a breast cancer survivor which is so wonderful!!!

I asked her if she was able to debut her gown during her recent hospital visit and here is what she had to say:

"Don't you know it was the first thing I told my husband to get when we found out I was getting admitted and he had to go home to get stuff. I LOVE it and so did my nurses and visitors. It fit me well and covered me up. I really loved the pockets too! My mom and mother in law thought it was so wonderful! It made them instantly happy when I changed into it. They forgot about what was going on for a couple of minutes. Love love love it!!"

Thank you Melody. We are so happy that everything is ok with you and the baby. Now keep that baby comfortable inside you and we can't wait to see pictures in a few months!!!

Another New Happy Mom in her Designer Hospital Gown

We got this wonderful testimonial from Cyndi who delivered a beautiful baby girl!!!

"I am a petite woman and to have this gown fit me was great. The material was light and the back closing ribbons are perfectly placed so you are not showing off all the assets. I felt pretty and I looked different from the rest of the patients. In fact, all the nurses were complimenting me on how cute my gown was! Thank you Annie & Isabel for making such a good quality gown that a girl can feel sassy in even after giving birth!"

What a beautiful baby and family!!! Congratulations Cyndi.

"Why did you become a nurse and not a doctor?"

Annie & Isabel is off to a great start! We have been sending gowns all over the country! As many of you know, even to Barbara Walters for her upcoming valve replacement surgery later this week. We hope her publicist can deliver it to Barbara, as we all know she would love it!

It makes us so happy hearing about all the people who are enjoying their Annie & Isabel gowns. Babies are being born in style, as they should be on that wonderful day! We have sent several Elizabeth gowns, our breast cancer gown, to people newly diagnosed with breast cancer. We hope that it will make radiation treatments and hospital stays a little better.

My sister and partner Anna is finishing up her 15th wedding anniversary trip on the Amalfi Coast in Italy, soooooo jealous!!! I thought I would do a quick blog post in honor of National Nurses Week! A profession we both LOVE!

I recently sat on a panel of my good friend Brenda's daughter, who wants to become a nurse. She is in high school and had to do a presentation on what career path she wanted to take. She was so cute and talked about nursing with such excitement. I think she will be an amazing addition to my wonderful profession. She has the passion for it, and it truly is a calling. At the end of her presentation, her teacher said, "Why do you want to become a nurse, and not a doctor?" I laughed to myself, because anyone who would ask this question has never been in the hospital.

I've been asked that a million times and if you ask any doctor or nurse... they are two very different jobs. I have the utmost respect for physicians and all that they do for their patients. They commit their lives to serving people day in and day out. I really respect this and love working with all the wonderful physicians at UCSF. But, that being said, nursing is where it is at! It takes a special person to want to become a nurse. It is not for everyone, we see everything... and I mean everything! Let's just say, there are days at work that I don't want to tell my husband about....and I need an immediate shower. But to me, I don't care about that..

I've been a nurse now for over a decade... wow! I think back to nursing school at USF... My best friend Sara and I so timid and scared... *knock...knock* "Mr. Smith... Can we come in?" as our hands shook and we second guessed every move we made! Taking a blood pressure was a BIG deal!!! We laugh about it now, but our fellow nurses took us under their wings and made us into strong, confident, knowledgeable nurses. Most of my friends and even some of my family members don't know what I do at work. I didn't even know what nurses REALLY did when I went to nursing school. Nurses have serious power. They are the eyes and ears to doctor's critical decisions. They can be your best advocated if you are lying in that hospital bed (hopefully stylin' in you A&I gown). I could go on and on, but I just want to say some reasons why I love being a nurse in honor of National Nurses Week.

1. I learn something new every day.
2. Every day is different.
3. I work 12 hours and I go home. Home to my amazing family and leave my job to another nurse to carry on.
4. I leave my work at work.
5. Sometimes I can't leave my work at work.... just ask my Husband, Mom, and Sister (thanks for all the vent sessions!)
6. I love my job and I also feel like a stay at home mom (or SAHM- whatever those girls call it!!!)
7. I work 2 days a week and have 5 to play with my boys and have fun with Annie & Isabel.
8. I love difficult patients... really angry ones are the best. I have 12 hours to win them over...(almost) have never lost at that game!
9. When I started in the ICU, I had major issues with death.
10. Now, I feel honored if I can help someone die comfortably and sometimes be the last person to hold his or her hand and tell them it's going to be ok.
11. I am an adrenaline junkie (aren't we all???) and get a rush when someone is crashing.
12. Nurses amaze me. When I am working on the crashing patient... there are a dozen helping hands next to me in one second... Really.
13. Humans are resilient beings and can come back from A LOT. I have had my doubts and people continue to surprise me.
14. Cultures fascinate me. Like I said, learn something new every day.
15. I love the elderly. They are the best history lesson there is.
16. I will never lose sight that there is a person under all of the machines, critical drips, and wires. If I do, I will retire.
17. As nurses, we are not here to judge, just help people recover. Something that all nurses should tell themselves before every shift. We see a lot and this can be challenging.
18. If I ever get tired of the intensive care unit, I want to go to labor & delivery with the babies. Not sure if I can handle the moms!
19. After a 12 hour shift at work, my problems always seem a lot less significant.
20. If I won the lottery, I would still work.

A testimonial from a beautiful new Mom! The Annie Designer Hospital Gown

This is Dana who wore 2 Annie & Isabel Gowns, The Annie and The Anita during the birth of her son Landon. Congratulations Dana!!!

Here is what Dana had to say about her experience in her very own Annie & Isabel Gown...

"It was truly great! EVERY single nurse I had at Cedars ~ the mecca of celebrity births for stylish women like Gwen Stefani, Jennifer Garner, Nicole Richie, Tori Spelling ~ asked where I got the gown (both The Annie & The Anita Gowns) and noted how stylish they were. There was plenty of coverage so that I was very comfortable wearing them when I went up to a different floor to visit Landon in the NICU. Because I was in-patient for almost one week, I sent the gowns home with Jim to be washed, which they withstood beautifully. Thanks so much for coming up with such a great product!"

Noelle's Story

Meet our dear friend Noelle

Did you know that 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime?

This is our friend Noelle. She is an amazing person, wife, friend, and the mother of two beautiful children. She has breast cancer. We met with Noelle to have her check out our gowns and hear her story. She has had a beautiful attitude during her illness and always has a smile on her face. She is going to beat this and we know it! We feel honored that Noelle will be the first to wear our breast cancer gown, "The Elizabeth", during her upcoming hospital stay.

Noelle has finished her chemotherapy and her next step will be surgery. She is preparing herself with her courageous attitude and amazing support system around her.

Please join us in keeping Noelle and her family in your thoughts and prayers .

If you would like to learn more about Noelle and support her along this journey, please visit her Caringbridge site at:

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/noellemalone

Another testimonial is in... The Isabel Designer Hospital Gown....was a HIT!

One of our dear friends Dimitra wore two of our first generation Annie & Isabel Gowns. Here she is in The Isabel on the day that she delivered her beautiful son! Welcome to motherhood Di~ You are going to be an amazing Mom!
Love you!

Dimitra introducing her niece Alexia to her new cousin

Here is what Dimitra had to say about her experience in her very own Annie & Isabel Gown...

"I am so happy that I had my own gown during my time in the hospital having my son...especially during such long stretches of time, waiting for the show to start! My gown fit great, was comfortable, and the best part is knowing that this gown had not been worn by others- it was exclusively for me;) My Doctor came in to check on me during my long hospital visit and said that on the board, out by the nurse's station, they had written next to my name "cute gown!" Funny how a little thing such as having my own gown made me feel SO special. So many pictures were taken of me that I will treasure forever. It was nice to have something on that looked great in the pictures with my new son."

Testimonial - The Evelyn Designer Hospital Gown

We just received this testimonial from a client who wore the Evelyn Designer Hospital Gown. What a beautiful family this is. The photo below is of Stephanie and her family with their new bundle of joy. These pictures were captured by Brenda Bisharat Photography who professionally photographed Stephanie's birth.





Here is what Stephanie had to say about her experience in The Evelyn designer hospital gown:

"New, Fresh, & Beautiful...words to describe the experience wearing my Annie & Isabel gown. I absolutely LOVE my gown. There is just something about wearing a hospital gown that you know no one else has used. I was completely comfortable, felt beautiful in my bright spring colors, and was able to get up and walk around, fully covered! The gown was the perfect backdrop for pictures with our new baby and family. Compliments were coming every which way from the hospital staff and family and friends, something that makes you feel even more special on an amazing day such as delivering your baby. I can't say THANK YOU enough."

Stephanie, we can't thank you enough for your kind words. It makes us so happy to know that our gown made an experience just a little bit more special and fun.