Edye Maier

This is our 14th year participating in March for Babies through our team Maier Miracles. We would love to have your support as we aim to reach our highest fundraising total yet.

The parents to three beautiful little girls – 14-year-old twins and an 12-year- old, we became involved with March for Babies in support of March of Dimes after our experience with having premature babies in October 2011. Through our interactions with other families over the years we have found that while every prematurity story is unique we also share so many similarities. 

We were definitely surprised when we learned that we would be having twins – and a little nervous. We knew that a multiple pregnancy increased our chances of a premature birth. We made sure to choose a hospital in the beginning of the pregnancy with a great NICU, but we weren’t quite prepared for what it would really be like there.

After a month on bed rest, Emily and Lindsey, were born at 28 weeks gestation. That night was like what I envisioned it would be in the movies – rushing down the hallway on a gurney for an emergency C-section, a nervous husband/father waiting outside the operating room and two premature babies being rushed by on their way to the NICU.

Emily was born weighing 2lb. 6 oz. and Lindsey was 1lb. 9 oz. It was then that we entered life in the NICU. It never crossed our minds that we wouldn’t get to hold our babies in our arms for days. Or that we would watch nurses and doctors placing iv lines into the tiniest veins we could imagine.

On our first day in the NICU, there was a note from a previous NICU family along with a purple bracelet that said “One Day at a Time” on one side and March of Dimes on the other.  We both wore that bracelet every day that our girls were in the NICU. It was comforting to have the support of others who had experienced what life in the NICU was like. As a result, we also looked to the March of Dimes resources for support throughout our time in the NICU. Thankfully the girls did well and Emily came home after 66 days in the NICU and Lindsey after 80 days. Now, they are thriving 14-year olds that love spending time with their 12-year-old sister and our dog, Teddy.

We didn’t really know much about March of Dimes until we were thrown into the world of prematurity. Through our time in the NICU, March of Dimes was there for us as a source of support and they continue to be there for babies. We started our March for Babies Team as a way to give back.

We hope you will consider helping us to reach our goal!