2nd Annual Layton's Legacy Fundraiser & Card Drive

Hi there friends, and welcome to the 2nd annual Layton's Legacy Card Drive & Fundraiser for NICU Parents. I plan this event each year in honor, and in memory of my son, Layton Caleb Lawson.

Layton was born 11 weeks early on June 9, 2016, weighing in at almost 3 pounds with two critical medical conditions. He had a heart condition called Double Outlet Right Ventricle with Ventricular Septal Defect (aka: DORV w/VSD), and he had a stomach condition called an omphalacele. Because of his premature birth and those two complications, he also struggled with very bad lungs. Layton's life in the NICU wasn't easy, but he fought for every moment of it. He touched more people in his 5 months on this earth than most do in a lifetime, and on November 17, 2016, he made his way to Heaven to be with his big sister, Ellie.

My husband and I have been dealt a very hard hand, and every single day we miss those beautiful babies more than we can put into words. But I can't think of a better way to honor their memory than to give to those who find themselves in a similar situation to us. The medical diagnosis and prognosis may be different but one thing will always be the same...being the parent to a critically ill baby in the NICU is hard.

OCTOBER: PREGNANCY & INFANT LOSS AWARENESS MONTH

Before I get to all the fundraising info, I wanted to let you know that this month was deemed Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness month on October 15, 1988 by President Reagan. Did you know that 1 in 4 are affected by infertility, pregnancy & infant loss? That is 25% of our population, which is a staggering statistic. And while this type of loss is so common, talking and sharing about it has been stigmatized & shamed for many years. We are finally becoming more sensitive as a society, but there is always more work to be done. We are conditioned to believe that death happens at the end of a complete and full life, and it is uncomfortable when we are taken out of that mindset. But the truth is that sometimes lives are taken before they even have a chance to begin. Some lives are taken at the very beginning, and others are taken far too soon. But that doesn't mean they weren't as loved and as wanted as a life that continues, and it is important that we allow parents to talk about their children, and grieve their little ones in any way they need to.

This looks different for anyone grieving the loss of a pregnancy, infant or child. October 15th is known in the loss community as the Wave of Light. Some draw comfort from lighting a candle in honor of their lost child, and sharing on social media. I find more comfort in doing good in honor of my babies, and thus, Layton's Legacy was born.

LAYTON'S LEGACY FUNDRAISING

Each year I have a set goal of raising $2500. This allows me to purchase (50) $50 Starbucks gift cards, which equates to one gift card for every bed in the Level 4 NICU at University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital, where Layton lived his entire life. Fundraising efforts will run from today through November 10th. This will give me enough time to withdraw the funds, make necessary purchases and bring them to the hospital the week of November 17th. This year I have set up a GoFundMe page, as YouCaring was taken over by them right after my fundraiser last year. There are many ways you can help, and here is how: 

1. DONATE - directly to Layton’s Legacy GoFundMe Fundraising Page.

2. SHARE - not everyone is able to financially donate, but sharing on your social media outlets is welcomed & helpful!

3. CREATE - this year’s card drive theme is “Sensitive Sympathy” geared towards parents who have lost a pregnancy due to miscarriage or stillbirth, infant or child. You can get all the card drive info HERE.

SPONSORS & PRIZES

This fundraising & card drive effort wouldn't be possible without some amazing companies who have supported me, lifted me up and chosen to honor & remember my little ones right alongside me. You will see these company owners, design team coordinators & members, and my closest crafting friends sharing about Layton's Legacy all over social media & on their blogs. They are also offering up some fantastic prizes to help make this fundraising & card drive effort FUN!

 

This year prizes will be drawn randomly from all donation & cards linked to the card drive. You get one entry per item, and winners will be posted on the Layton's Legacy Prize page during the week of November 17th. (Please note that it might be later in the week, as this is the anniversary of Layton's passing, and it isn't the easiest week for me. I will need you to extend me some grace.)

Finally, I wanted to share something that is basically my heart in photopolymer. I came to Kinnari, the owner of Pinkfresh Studio, earlier this summer and asked if she would be willing to manufacture & sell a stamp & die set for Layton's Legacy. She gave me a resounding yes, and we got to work on this special stamp set called "Forever in our Hearts". This stamp set is a beautiful collaboration of my thoughts, my heart & sentiments, with the butterfly being brought to life by our graphic designer/illustrator Inna Moreva, and the sentiments coming to life by Kinnari Zaveri.

FOREVER IN OUR HEARTS 6X8 STAMP SET

FOREVER IN OUR HEARTS DIE SET

This stamp set is full of sensitive sympathy sentiments, with some being geared specifically towards pregnancy & infant loss. But we were sure to add enough sentiments that can be used for any type of loss, giving you some really honest & loving ways to send your condolences and sympathies.

I chose a butterfly for this stamp set, because this is what they use in hospitals to signify there has been a loss of a baby. They put up a butterfly on the number plate to your door, so that all staff members know to only go into the room if they absolutely have to, and to be quiet & quick if they must. Apart from that, when you think about a butterfly and its life cycle...it also just seems fitting.

I've created a video today for Layton's Legacy & for this card set, and I would love for you to watch it below or HERE in HD.

I have created a set of cards with this stamp set today, and I am so excited to share them with you. I left them relatively simple, so the butterfly & the sentiments could take center stage.

This first card was created by ink blending with some of the softest shades from our brand new premium dye ink release. I've used my favorite cloud stencils from Taylored Expressions to create the background. Isn't it a nice thing to think that lost little ones are just above a set of rainbow clouds?

HOW TO CREATE:
1. Ink blend the clouds to heavyweight white cardstock.
2. Stamp the sentiment to the bottom in onyx black Versafine.
3. Diecut the panel with the largest Diagonal Stitched Rectangle, then adhere to an A2 card base with foam adhesive.
4. Stamp & heat emboss the buttefly in Gilded embossing powder to vellum, then diecut.
5. Adhere the butterfly to the front of the card.
6. Accent the card with the Essentials: Jewels Mix in light pink, gold & white.

For this card, I used my FAVORITE paper from the Just A Little Lovely 6x6 paper pad. I've used the inlaid diecut technique for the butterfly on this card.

HOW TO CREATE:
1. Diecut a patterned paper panel with the largest Stitched Rectangle.
2. Diecut the butterfly from the left side, then stamp the sentiment to the lower right corner.
3. Mount the entire panel to the front of an A2 card base.
4. Stamp & heat emboss the buttefly in Gilded embossing powder to vellum, then diecut.
5. Adhered the butterfly inside the negative space on the card front.
6. Accent the card with the Essentials: Jewels Mix in light pink, gold & white.

I couldn't bare to waste the beautiful butterfly that was cut from the patterned paper above, so I used it to make this very quick & simple card.

 HOW TO CREATE:
1. Round the opposite corners of an A2 card base, then stamp the sentiment to the upper left corner.
2. Flick gold splatters to the front.
3.Stamp & heat emboss the butterfly in Gilded to the patterned paper diecut.
4. Adhere the butterfly to the card front.
5. Accent the card with the Essentials: Jewels Mix in light pink, gold & white.

I hope that you like my card set for today, and the heartfelt meaning behind them. As always, leave a comment if you have any questions about them. I will be sure to answer them.

Be sure to check out the Pinkfresh Studio blog post today, as many of my friends (some who are our team members and some who are guests) have also created cards with this special stamp set, and they are all gorgeous! You will definitely want to see them.

There are many different ways that you can follow along with Layton's Legacy. You will get most of the info from here on my blog. But I will be sharing on all 3 of my social media accounts as well, and you can follow me on those below.

INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | FACEBOOK 

Thank you SO much for reading this post, and for being part of the 2nd Annual Layton's Legacy. I appreciate it more than I can say. With your help, we can make this fundraising effort & card drive another success!

SUPPLY LIST

For your shopping convenience, all products are linked below, including affiliate linking when possible - this allows small compensation for me at no cost to you. I typically link to 2-3 sites, in hopes that your preferred retailer will be among them. I only support legitimate retail sites, that are true partners to stamp, die and scrapbooking wholesalers.