Note: voting has closed, I will be making an announcement in the next couple days. Working out details with the winner(s).
Hey all! So we're one step closer to getting this shower off! We had three submissions so far, which I will re-post in the body of this message for ease of reading.
There's just one quick rule for voting: your account must be one month or older, with the exception of /u/babydicristino because she posted in the original thread to send an item. This is to prevent voting fraud with people creating multiple accounts.
In order to vote, please either message the mods, or send a message to /u/0hn035. This keeps votes confidential so that there are no hard feelings.
If you did not sign up to contribute to the shower, but would like to, please feel free to post here. The original thread can be found here with details on how everything goes.
Ok! On to our entrants (posted in the order in which they entered)!
/u/sunsetdreamer
Hello Everyone!
Well, I had written to 0hn035 when I saw the post a few days ago about the baby shower participation. This is the message I inboxed her so instead of re writing it I will share it with you all. I do appreciate you doing this for mothers in need and even if I am not chosen I completely understand the overwhelming gratitude that the mommy to be that is helped out feels. When you're in a bad situation suddenly, the kindness of strangers literally could mean everything in the world. Here is my story.
My baby is due in early February and my husband and I are struggling. He was just laid off indefinitely on July 18th. We already have a 15 month old but have sold most of his things (meaning newborn clothes, pack n play, and a few toys) at a recent mom to mom sale last week just to pay bills and rent. Thankfully, we still have his crib because he is in that now and will be transitioned into toddler bed so baby can have his old crib. We have applied for Unemployment Benefits but have not received a check yet. We also have applied for food assistance and just received the card yesterday.
I work at a local high school but obviously there is no income in the summer. Even when I go back to work it is not going to be nearly enough to save anything for baby (including diapers). Plus, I have a high risk pregnancy and may have to leave my job once it gets later in pregnancy. I am a "lunch lady" and am constantly on my feet, cooking food, or cleaning the tables after the kids are done eating.
My husband has also applied through Unemployment to be able to go back to school while he's collecting it. So he's registered for the EMT program at our local college and will be a licensed EMT by December and hopefully will be set up with a job immediately before baby gets here late January/early February. I would be MORE THAN HAPPY to show ANY proof of this that's requested. I feel like a failure as a parent and a person. We would have never considered having another baby if we knew 3 months into the pregnancy that my husbands job (and main income) would be terminated. I've never been on government assistance before and I feel like I've failed my son and my other child before he/she is even born. My husband is stressing out and it's causing a void of communication in our marriage. Mostly because he feels like he isn't supporting his family as the man of the home and doesn't want me to be upset. It's just a really bad situation which we are hoping will turn into a good one by December/January when he becomes a licensed EMT.
Is anyone out there also married to or friends with an EMT? Can you tell me what to expect after my husband gets his license? I was just wondering if anyone could give him and I some pointers about what to expect or look for. Thank you. I am trying to be optimistic about this. Maybe this sudden career change will be a good thing for our future. I have to think that things always happen for a reason, right?
Again, I would be more than willing to show any proof. Drivers license, Unemployment Verification, Termination Letter, Food Assistance Approval.....anything. Thank you for considering me and thank you for hosting this for someone in need.
/u/SillyLilyButt
Hello ladies(and gents if you're reading.)
My name is Heather and I'm due January 15th, 2015. My husband got discharged from the Army in January 2013, when our daughter was about 3/4 months old. We were living on Fort Irwin, California in a house and had room for all of my daughter's items. When we left Fort Irwin, we moved into southern California into my MIL's 2 bedroom apartment, where we stayed in my BIL's bedroom until May of this year. We've just moved from California to Missouri, where I know absolutely nobody. My husband moved us here to attend college with his GI Bill, which will give us enough money to pay rent and bills, but not much else.
I've been job hunting, but nobody seems interested in hiring a pregnant woman and the only jobs willing to only give me enough money to pay for day care, which makes them basically pointless. So I'm a SAHM, which I love.
As I've posted in r/babybumps....my marriage has hit a rocky place. My husband is the only person I have around here to talk to and enjoy things with, but lately we just haven't been getting along. I'm not sure if it's pregnancy hormones or just life, but it has sunk me into a bit of a depression(which I have a history of and was on medication for before I got pregnant with my first) I feel like something like this might help to lift my spirits a little bit. This baby was not planned, and I've been having a hard time accepting that I'm even having another. If I'm not chosen, I completely understand and I think what you ladies are doing is absolutely amazing and I know the help will go to a much deserving momma to be. Best wishes to all involved, and I'm willing to provide whatever information is needed if I'm chosen. :)
/u/Mavsma
This sounds like a fun thing. I had a lot of fun participating in a reddit exchange earlier this year. I love the way it connected me even in a brief way to someone else's life, someone who I'd likely never would have connected with otherwise (I got to send a huge box of assorted American snacks to Israel). This will my 2nd so I will not be having a baby shower, we gave away most of the baby stuff already, and while we aren't super into gender specific items this one is a different gender than our 1st. I'm the primary breadwinner in our family and due to changes in our insurance this birth is going to cost us out of pocket $6000 more than our 1st. We are of course tightening our budget to save up for the medical costs but that leaves us a very narrow margin for any new (to us, we are fans of used or "green") baby items. This would be a tremendous help for our growing family.
Again, to vote, please send a message to the mods or a PM to /u/0hn035 with the username of the person you are voting for. If you did not sign up to contribute, but would like to, you may post in this thread. I will contact all original participants directly and voting will close Thursday at 10pm, or once all those who have agreed to participate respond; whichever comes first.