Olivia Learns to Share

Tonight, I opened up a letter from Mothers' Milk Bank at Austin and read this:

"Dear Pieper,
Thanks you for the life saving donations of milk! As the rate of premature birth continues to rise, the need for donor milk is urgent. You have played a critical role in the lives of fragile infants- THANK YOU! The following quotes are two of many we have received from parents of milk bank recipient babies. We wanted to share them with you so that you would know what a difference you have made in the life of their children.

"We would like to thank all of you so very much for providing us with "mommy milk". We truly believe that she is the healthy, thriving little girl that she is today because of your enabling us to provide her with what God intended and I could not produce. Our heartfelt thanks to all the mothers." -Recipient's mom (baby was 2 lbs. 6 oz. at birth)

"Born via c-section and drug-positive at birth, our baby was removed from her biological parents. Never breastfed, she would be placed on a variety of formulas. By 8 weeks of age she had gained a scant 2 pounds, spit-up most of what she was fed and usually cried herself into an exhausted sleep only to go through it all over again in 1-2 hours. Today, she is a chubby, healthy, developmentally on target one year old. She is one of the happiest babies I've ever seen with a big smile for almost anyone. What made this difference in her world? Breastmilk from Mothers' Milk Bank at Austin." -Recipient's foster mom

We appreciate all of the time and effort that you put into being a donor of mother's milk. Your generosity has been a blessing to premature infants and ill babies who thrive and grow due to human milk's disease fighting antibodies and ideal nutrition. Winston Churchill once said, "You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give." Signed, MMBA

Also enclosed, was a gold sealed certificate that states: "On behalf of the premature and ill infants in Texas and beyond, The Mothers' Milk Bank at Austin gratefully acknowledges Pieper for your generous gift of 192 ounces of donor human milk. A special thanks to Olivia for sharing her mommy's milk."

How precious is that? Wow. I can't tell you how good it felt to know that maybe my milk helped a tiny baby somewhere. I had Anthony read the letter and certificate and he told me he was proud of me and then stated how much he loves Olivia and how thankful he was that she is so healthy. I told him that was exactly what I wanted in donating- to possibly give other parents with sick or premature babies the chance to know the love for their child as we have been blessed.