WHY we’re doing the #WalkForSickKids Canaccord Genuity Great Camp Adventure Walk.
I’m pretty sure every new mom sits at about Defcon 2 most days when it comes to watching over their new baby.
The worry and the unknown consume you. Every baby book tells you something different. Every baby book says trust your instincts, you know your baby best.
Three weeks in to the birth of our new son, something changed very quickly. Every feeding he would projectile vomit. All over my shirt, down my bra, his jumper, couch, EVERYWHERE.
It started happening too often so we went to the hospital clinic to be sure he was ok. We will always remember the new-parent-you’re-an-idot-eye-roll of the doctor, who thought nothing was the matter.
He must just have caught a virus.
We went back home feeling foolish, except that when we fed him next, he pulled an epic Linda Blair.
We looked at each other. Packed up and went straight to the emergency room.
The first hospital I won’t even get in to except to say that watching your sons 3 week old eyes pleading with you as a set of nurses clumsily try to get an IV into his hand will truly be one of the worst moments of my life. The night got worse from there. I sat the night in a chair, alone, told to calm him down when he wanted to feed (Ha!) watching my son in a crib that looked like a jail cell.
The next day we discovered that he had Pyloric Stenosis. To put it simply the valve between your stomach and intenstine never opens up making it impossible to digest anything.We were immediately sent to Sick Kids Hospital to check in there and await surgery.
Our experience at Sick Kids was 1000X different than that of the other hospital.
The nurses and doctors at Sick Kids get it. They offer calm and reassurance when your world seems steeped in throat-tightening anxiousness. They get that you are terrified, exhausted, need a coffee break, and how hard it is to simply be there, in a hospital, with your child. They know you would do anything to trade places.
We lived at SickKids hospital for over a week, and never felt anything but comfort and support the entire time. The rooms, the staff, the communication, the kindness, the research, the care were all because you knew that those who worked there WANTED to be there. If it hadn’t been for the staff, I don’t know how we would have done it.
We met other families, many who were going through such difficult times for their children. Our hearts ached for every one we met. Regardless of the reason, there was a common thread. They had come for the best care for their child, and they were so grateful for receiving it.
This is why we are doing the Canaccord Genuity Great Camp Adventure Walk, and why we are asking for your help to raise funds on behalf of SickKids Hospital. They put so much positive energy into making the worst time ever bearable, and we want to give back. With a goal of raising over 2 million dollars for SickKids, we are joining Toronto’s greatest adventure walk on Sept 26th.
To give a nod to the best Sequence team at the cottage and our Gym Riot days as teens, we have affectionately named our team #TeamCoolGreen. And we want YOU! ..To JOIN us in supporting this incredible cause.
How Can You Help?
- Come on our team, raise $500 and get fit walking up to 20km in a challenge-by-choice (you can do 5k, 10k, whatever you like) ..as Nike says JUST DO IT!
- Use promo code “social” to receive a $10 discount off The Great Camp Adventure Walk registration fee! Adults are $65 for a whole day of food and fun, Children are $35.
- Donate to our #WalkForSickKids Donation Page
- Enter the The Great Camp Adventure Contest where you have a chance to win 1 of 5 $100 donations to a team of your choice and an additional $100 for you to decide what to do with ( I would donate it to SickKids…#JustSayin)
- Share all over social media to support the incredible work that #WalkForSickKids does for sick children & for their families
- Check out Walkforsickkids.ca
To enter The Great Camp Adventure Contest, simply enter below for a chance to spread the joy.
The Great Camp Adventure Walk for SickKids Promotion Contest
Disclosure: I am part of the Canaccord Genuity Great Camp Adventure Walk for SickKids campaign with Influence Central and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.
