On the Twelfth Day of 25 Days of Giveaways....

Hello, for the first time or the 50th time, either way, welcome and thank you for visiting "On KK's Butterfly Wings" and taking part in the 25 Days of Giveaways that was started by the beautiful Tina over at "Living without Sophia and Ellie." Last year was the first Christmas that I joined in on this wonderful event, and not only did it give me joy by winning but also by providing some joy to others.  I am honored to be part of it all again...and hope that it helps someone out there remember and honor the life/lives of the beautiful baby/ies he/she is missing.  

Just a little bit about my story....this is my 3rd Christmas without my firstborn and only daughter, sweet Kennedy Kate.  Kennedy became her very own angel after only 22 weeks gestation.  However, about a month after we lost her, we found out she had passed away due to complications with Turner's Syndrome.  Kennedy had fought long and hard to be with me as long as she could, but eventually, her little heart stopped developing.  Even as I sit here today, a little over two years removed from that day when we found out she was gone, I cannot believe it happened.  However, the one thing that always gives me some peace is knowing that she has a purpose.  That her life had purpose...and not just to me, but to many others.  Kennedy's life continues to educate others about miscarriage, stillbirth, compassion, empathy and grief.  Yet her life also teaches others to never take anything for granted and rejoice in the many blessings that you have been offered.  Kennedy is currently the greatest and best gift I have ever received.  I thank God everyday for giving me the opportunity to be her mother.  

Anyways, on to the giveaway.  As the title says... "On the twelfth day of 25 Days of Giveaways, I am offering you the opportunity to win a $40 gift certificate to Metal Stamped Memories.  This gift certificate is good towards any of the the beautiful aluminum pieces that the talented mother of Carter, Michaela, creates.  The lovely Michaela made a necklace for my giveaway last year and this year donated the gift certificate for the event.  Michaela is a lovely local Wisconsin woman who I met about a year ago at a walk called, "Miles of Hope."  After meeting her, I was able to purchase one of her necklaces that she specifically designed for that walk/run.  That necklace was one of the first pieces I bought in honor of Kennedy.  Since then, my collection of jewelry pieces has just taken off.  This includes the piece that I offered last year for the giveaway.

However, this is only one of the options that Michaela designs for mothers like me and you.  She has many more.  Here is another one of my new favorites of hers, "My love will fly to you each night on angel's wings."  There are ways that you can personalize and make it your own...Michaela is always very accommodating.  She knows and understands what it is like to go through a loss and how important it is for each of us to find ways to remember and honor our children.  

I cannot thank Michaela enough for donating such a wonderful and thoughtful gift.  I am privileged to know her and call her my friend.  I encourage every one of you to check out her shops either on her website, Etsy or Facebook.  She is absolutely amazing! :)

Okay, now on to how you can enter this incredible giveaway.  For one entry, please comment below on who you are missing this Christmas.  For a second entry, please check out and like Metal Stamped Memories Facebook page and then come back here and let me know.  For a third entry, please visit Metal Stamped Memories website  and return here to tell me your favorite piece of jewelry or keepsake.  Giveaway for Day 12 will close December 13th at 10:00 PM CST.  Winners will be announced on December 14th.  

Thank you again for visiting...sending lots of love to you all during this holiday season.  May the love of your angels always grace you with peace and joy in your hearts.  ((hugs))

25 Days of Giveaways Alert

So, I am totally trying to get back into blogging, especially with so many stressful events going on in my life, but before I do, I wanted to take the time to let everyone who reads my blog the opportunity to know about a fabulous event that will more than likely be taking place the entire month of December. It is called the 25 Days of Giveaways. This event was started by the beautiful and talented mother of Living Without Sophia and Ellie, Tina, two years ago after the loss of her twin girls. Tina is an amazing woman and mother to all of her children. She has an incredible talent of creating beautiful jewelry at Mama Mia Custom Stamped Jewelry. I personally own one of her custom-designed necklaces myself and it is one of my favorite pieces that I wear to honor Kennedy.

Anyways, back to the 25 Days of Giveaways.... Each day a blogger or two will host a day with some type of giveaway. It can be just about anything. For example, I have a wonderful friend who designs jewelry similar to Tina's, and I asked her to create a necklace for the event. Some bloggers offer giveaways directly related to the holidays or related to infant loss. It's up to you. If you are interested in hosting a day, please check out Tina's post located here. If you aren't interested in hosting a day but would love to check out the giveaways, Tina will be posting each day who is hosting. It will be up to you to keep up. In a holiday season that can often be quite difficult to get through while grieving the loss of your child/ren, this event is sure to put a smile on your face at some point. I not only won some things, but it introduced me to several different bloggers who have become my friends over the last year. Plus, there are some pretty talented people out there who create unique things for this community and for others.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I look forward to hosting one of the days for this event and helping whoever I can, including myself, get through some difficult times. Hang in there and know that we can get through this together. ((hugs))

Christmas Eve Giveaway Winner

I was so honored to host a day for the 25 days of Giveaways...thank you again to Tina for all she did to set that up. What a wonderful idea for such a "trying" month.... Hugs to all of you who made it through the past holiday with flying colors. As I have busy catching up on blogs, I have seen how so many of you did what was best for you with the holidays. You found ways to honor and remember your babies but also only did what you could handle. That's what this ride is all about....finding ways to deal with the incredible loss/es we have all suffered and doing what's right for us. I have a lot to write about in the upcoming days, but this post was about the winner of my Christmas Eve giveaway....

So, congratulations goes to Comment #16: Ali. I'm so glad that you will have this necklace to remember your little Cadynce with. Hugs to you, momma. I will contact you via email soon. Thank you to all who entered....I really enjoy giveaways, so I'm thinking that by 100 followers, I may be up for doing another one. Hopefully, that comes soon.
Thank you again to Michaela....at Metal Stamped Memories....I love the work that you do. My recent purchases from you are beautiful. Always sending love to you and your family.

Christmas Eve Giveaway

Happy Christmas Eve!! And welcome to "On KK's butterfly wings..." I'm so very honored to be a part of the 25 Days of Giveaways started by the lovely Tina. I have anxiously been awaiting my day hoping that my giveaway brings joy and peace to the lucky winner. Since losing my sweet baby girl in October of 2009, I have desperately tried to find things or ways to always keep her close to my heart. The one thing that has been easiest to do this with is jewelry. So, I have tons of it. From necklaces, bracelets and rings....it all keeps Kennedy's memory alive and with me at all times. So, I knew that for my giveaway I needed to find the perfect piece. A piece that was symbolic of this time of year...yet can last all year long. I think there is a huge piece of us that is missing this time of year and there is a hole in our hearts that were once filled by our precious babies. However, I think everyone of us know that we still carry our babies with us...everyday....in our hearts. So, with no further ado: "I carry your heart in my heart"

This necklace was created by the lovely Michaela at Metal Stamped Memories. I met Michaela this past November at the Miles of Hope for Moms that Mourn run/walk. She was walking in memory of her little boy, Carter. Michaela now specializes in unique child loss jewelry and mother's birthstone necklaces. The lucky winner of this necklace can add whatever stone he/she would want along with a disc that could state babies names, dates, etc. Thank you, Michaela, for allowing me to showcase your beautiful work as we remember our babies together this holiday season.

In order to be included in this giveaway, please comment and share who you carry in your hearts this holiday season. I will do my best to have the winner posted on Christmas day. Love and hugs to you all this holiday season....may the season be gentle with your hearts.

Thank you, December

November has been a terrible month for me. And I haven't quite figured out why... Was it that the anxiety and anticipation of October wasn't as bad as I thought it would be? And that in all actuality I enjoyed finding ways to honor my little girl. So, maybe November was kind of a let down in a lot of ways? No one really wanted to talk about plans that would be made for Kennedy or even mention her name at all. We had passed October... It was time to move on. Maybe? Or maybe the doom and gloom of cold weather hit and the overwhelming sense of glee and happiness from others over the holidays hit? I really don't know...but I do know that I can't wait to turn the calendar to the next month. Although I anticipate the busy-ness of this month and the sadness from missing my little girl during the holidays, I am willing to accept the change of the month in hopes that it will be a better one. Somethings gotta give, right?

So, here's to you, December. The magical month of many holidays, my birthday and beautiful snowy weather. May this month bring more happy times and smiles to last into next year. Wishing this for you all this month, even though I know it may seem to be quite difficult. Hoping you find something that makes your heart glow again. Maybe it will the 25 days of giveaways or the holiday gift exchange? Maybe it will be a friendly comment or card from a fellow BLM who understands what you're going through. Maybe it will be a heartfelt text from a long-lost friend that just wants to show you that he/she cares? Whatever it may be...I hope it comes to each of you at least once during this month. We all deserve a break, why not make it during the holiday season? Hugs and love.

Dearest Kennedy,

Mommy is very much looking forward to a change of pace this holiday season. A change of heart...where I feel some comfort knowing I'm doing things for me and in honor of you at all times. I hope you like your new little things that I put out for you at Roselawn. Can't wait to add more as the month goes on. Hoping the snow doesn't prevent that.... I am so curious of what Heaven is like this time of year. Wondering if you're wearing beautiful red dresses with bows in your curly hair (I'm almost positive it would be curly). Thank you for keeping watch over me and all the people I love. I can feel your presence with me, sweet girl. Keep smiling, little chickadee, and know that I always love you. Happy December, KK.

Love you,
Mommy