Today, on National NICU Nurse Day, we would to take a moment to highlight an extraordinary NICU Nurse, Trish Ringley, who has gone above and beyond for the tiny patients she cares for.
Trish has been a NICU nurse since 1997, and she’s passionate about helping families make the most of the overwhelming experience of having a baby in the NICU. She created Every Tiny Thing, an online NICU shop, as a way to offer families some much needed joy by designing products to brighten the NICU. She currently works in a level 3 NICU, and also writes for VeryWell.com as their Preemies expert.
One of the products we love from Every Tiny Thing is a beautiful NICU Family Posters.
It provides a great way for families to document who cared for their baby in the NICU. We asked Trish why she designed them.
“The idea for the signature posters came to me at a fairly unexpected place – my cousin’s wedding. The bride and groom asked everyone to leave a thumbprint, signed with our names, on a beautiful tree illustration. The print was filled with sweet reminders of everyone who had celebrated their big day. It was the first time I had “signed” a guest book like that, and suddenly it hit me – this would be great for NICU families! I immediately started dreaming up possibilities for the NICU.”
Often times, parents journey through the NICU with a team of nurses, doctors and more who become their support team, cheerleaders, shoulder to cry on and the only people who truly understand exactly what they’ve been through. In other words, the NICU staff become a family of sorts, and parents deserve a beautiful way to remember that important first family.
“When I drew up my first prototype, the response was incredible. Nurses, doctors, and parents all loved the idea.”
Parents love it as a wonderful way to remember all the many people they had met, and as a keepsake to share with their child – a way to show their grown child exactly who the people were who cared for them during those important first few months of life.
“I think I was more surprised, though, by how much the nurses loved it. They shared stories of how attached they became to NICU families and babies, and how they miss those special families after they leave. The nurses really appreciated the idea that families would honor them by creating this personal and adorable keepsake.”
So the poster became a reality, with the original version using our Every Tiny Thing logo baby elephant holding an enormous bunch of balloons, in 3 color schemes.
And starting today, in honor of NICU Nurse’s Day, Every Tiny Thing is unveiling 5 adorable new poster designs – with new options for twins and multiples, in many adorable styles – so all NICU families can find a poster that’s a perfect fit for their baby.
NICU Helping Hands loves providing opportunities for families to remember the NICU. While the NICU journey is difficult and often times long, it is still a part of the child’s life. Documenting moments and people who were part of the experience is important and this is a fantastic way to do so.
It has been a wonderful experience watching Trish Ringley’s love for her little patients explode into something families can cherish for years to come. With beautiful keepsakes such as NICU Family Posters, NICU crib decor, and prayer bracelets for NICU moms, Every Tiny Thing delivers joy that can only come from a company which truly understands the NICU.