Rolling with Esme - rolling into a brighter future, one tiny Tootsie at a time.

As many of you know, our daughter Esme was born 10 weeks premature. She spent 2 months in the NICU at the St Louis Children's Hospital. 

"A high risk pregnancy 
With strict precautions came next. 
Bleeding, bed rest, uncertainty; 
It was my NICU pretext. 

When she came it was 10 weeks too early. 
A Birthday present to me. 
I saw her flash in a whirlwind of white coats
Before anesthesia pulled me out to sea. 

A brief anchor of recognition
In a storm of medical professionals. 
That memory is a ghost that still haunts my heart. 
Despite three years of confessionals. 

Only recently have I grieved the loss of my “normal” delivery. 
Mourning no skin to skin. 
Our first two months apart; 
Traumatic; not how it should have been. 

No golden hour. 
No chance to breast feed. 
No chance to have another child. 
The list goes on; I reluctantly concede. 

A medical saga, rather than 
A natural progression. 
The normal never played out
In my succession. 

Now I join the March of Dimes
In their ‘Premature birth’ fight. 
So my baby girl Esme never has to 
Undergo this same kind of fight."

As heavy as this experience was, Esme truly received the best care. She is now 3 years old and absolutely thriving as a result of the extraordinary health care members who got us here. I recently wrote a short book called “The Aftermath; A Book on the Attachment with NICU, Adoptive, and Surrogate babies” for mothers who may have had a similar shared experience. Coming this Spring! 

With one in ten births both nation wide and worldwide being premature (37 weeks or earlier), this is a significant global health issue. In fact, the U.S. is the most dangerous high-income nation for childbirth. That's beyond unacceptable. Writing and reflecting on my family's experience with prematurity, I felt compelled to be a part of a mission to help end preterm birth and their associated complications. 

I am honoured to say our family has been selected to serve as the St Louis March of Dimes Ambassador Family for 2026. March of Dimes is a leading U.S. nonprofit organization fighting for the health of all moms and babies. This remarkable group was initially created to combat Polio, which they did when their research led to the Polio Vaccine. Now their focus has shifted to health threats mothers and babies face, including prematurity. 

Their research and efforts THUS FAR are responsible for: 

1. Folic Acid/Prenatal Vitamins - taken to prevent birth defects.
2. The POLIO Vaccine.
3. The APGAR Score taken at birth - the universal standard assessment of newborn's health.
4. Mandatory State Newborn Screening - the heel prick test which identifies serious but treatable conditions.
5. Surfactant Therapy - a critical therapy used to help premature babies treat Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS) by preventing air sacs from collapsing, dramatically improving survival rates and reducing chronic disease in preemies. A therapy that Esme benefited greatly from. 

This is why our family will walk in the MARCH FOR BABIES on Saturday June 6th, 2026 at Energizer Park in St Louis, MO. Along with the honour of serving as the Ambassador Family, we hope to raise $5000 to help mothers and babies have the best possible start. We would love for you to join the fight and consider making a donation: big or small, to support our team: “ROLLING WITH ESME -Rolling into a brighter future, one tiny Tootsie at a time". This money will go directly to the March of Dimes mission and goal of ending preterm birth and the associated complications. 

Please join our team “Rolling with Esme” so you can be with us while we walk on June 6th, 2026, even if you are far or unable to physically attend, please join the team in spirit. We APPRECIATE IT!

Lets ROLL. 

Love, 

Nadeane, Darius, Winfield and the honourable Miss Esme Dashtaki