Sunny has already posted a reminder on her blog, but I thought I’d do the same here (although she has WAY more readers at this point than I do).

Each year, our family participates in the March of Dimes March for Babies fundraiser. Our twins were born 7 weeks prematurely and even though they were exceptionally healthy for being born so early, we still spent a considerable amount of time in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Unless you’ve had a child in the NICU, you probably don’t understand what a trying experience that can be. Over the years, we’ve had people try to minimize our experience, telling us that it probably wasn’t as big a deal as we make it out to be. But we know better. We know we’re the lucky ones. Plenty of other families don’t have the success story to share that we do. (And by the way, don’t ever try to minimize someone’s feelings, especially when it comes to their children. Not cool.)

Anyway, this is the last week of our 2009 fundraiser effort. We haven’t made a huge deal this year because we know the economy has really impacted people’s charitable giving. But if you’re still considering making a donation, now is the time to do so. Simply click on the March for Babies icon in the sidebar and you can donate online. And of course, we’re inviting all of our friends and family to join us on Saturday at Bridge Street at 9:00am for this year’s walk.

The March of Dimes helps give children like ours the attention and treatment they need. Every year, half a million babies in the U.S. are born prematurely. Premature birth is the leading cause of newborn death and many life long disabilities. The funds we raise in WalkAmerica support research that saves babies’ lives.

The mission of March of Dimes is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality.