Reading Through the NICU

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Supporting NICU Families

One Book At A Time

Meet the Ward Family

Little Ward Books is a family owned publishing company.  Our mission is to raise awareness about the NICU experience, provide comfort to those with a child or children in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and support reading as a family.


Reading helped us cope with our journey through the NICU with our 3 miracles and is now our favorite way to bond with our children. We strive to be a resource to encourage others on their own journey through the NICU and beyond.


What is the N.I.C.U?

N.I.C.U. stands for Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Reading to babies in the NICU is beneficial for the whole family!  Grab a copy of Our NICU Journey and read something together every day!

About Our Books

Our NICU Journey

Our NICU journey is an inspiring children's book and keepsake that follows first time parents as their children find the strength, courage, and perseverance to come home.  

The illustrations are created from real photographs of the NICU and of real members of neonatal medical teams.  

This book is perfect for an uplifting gift for new NICU parents, NICU graduates, and healthcare professionals or supporters who are dedicated to this fragile community.

Coming Soon...

We are thrilled to announce our second book titled "One Step Behind" will be published spring 2023!  Join our Launch Team to find out more about our new title and be the first to read and review our new book!  There will be fun prizes available along the way!

Inside Features of Our NICU Journey Keepsake Book

It's A Love Letter to the NICU Community

Our NICU Journey is a love letter to your NICU miracle and to NICU families.  Remember that you are not alone.

It's Great For Parents of Multiples

This book is perfect for parents with one child or multiples.

A Perfect Keepsake or Going Home Gift

Record special details about your journey, document special first, and remember your healthcare team with signature pages

Personalize Your Book

Personalize your book by documenting your family's journey. 

Record Important Milestones

Celebrate each victory by recording your miracle's special firsts 

Remember Your Team

Remember the ones who helped bring your little one(s) home. Pages dedicated to Guests and Health Team Members make this book a favored NICU keepsake 

       Please contact for bulk orders: LittleWardBooks@gmail.com

*We discount for care packages and NICU book donations!*

Lets Read Together

What are the benefits?

What should I read?

You can read anything you want!  We are highlighting the benefits of Reading Through the NICU and Beyond by sharing our favorite stories on our social media platforms.

  We will feature some of our favorite books that we read during our NICU stays, as well as some new books we have grown to love!

*FREE ebooks are posted often, as well as guest author Story Time.*

Follow Us On Social Media For These Resources

Reviews

Sarah Ward writes a charming and loving account of her premature twins' NICU stay. With rhyme and dignity, she reveals the depth and strength of their journey. This book is a blessing to all the families affected by premature birth and she brings strength and hope to them. The watercolor illustrations are a beautiful complement to the deeply emotional story. Written as a love poem to the children, Our NICU Journey will be treasured for years. The resources listed at the end of the book and the journaling pages will be most helpful to families experiencing this process. Kudos to Sarah Ward for her efforts to bring hope and strength to others! 

Elizabeth S.

Amazon Review

"As a fellow NICU parent seeing that someone took their struggles and made them into a supportive book is truly amazing! I am proud to have been given the option to read this book and will recommend to fellow NICU parents for years to come!"

Amber M.

Nicu Parent

"Our NICU Journey is a sweet NICU book for families to read to any child.  Whether or not you have a NICU baby, you can enjoy this story and your children will too.  Spreading awareness on NICU stays is very important and this is why I love this book.  I also love the literature, it rhymes!  Super cute book art to capture the attention of little eyes, short and sweet."

NICU.mamas Foundation

Parent of a NICU graduate

Did you know that reviews help us reach more NICU families and providers?

It only takes a moment to write a brief sentence or two about what you liked about our book! 

Feel free to leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or share a photo on social media.


Resources In Our Book 

Beads of Courage® 

The Beads of Courage®  program provides children and their family a visual representation of their treatment history.  It's purpose is to help survivors see their journey in a tangible form.  We are partnering with this amazing nonprofit to share our story.  Click below for more information.

March of Dimes

49% of NICU patience are born premature.  Our twins were born at the gestational age of 28 weeks and March of Dimes provided comfort and care throughout our entire stay at the hospital.  For more information about premature birth and ways you can help please visit March of Dimes.           

Mothers' Milk Bank 

Mother's Milk Bank at Austin provides vital human milk to fragile infants in NICUs across the world.  All three of our NICU graduates received donor milk to increase their chance at survival.  We were fortunate enough to give back to the program..  If you are eligible please consider donation.           

Purple Butterfly Project

The Purple Butterfly Project created the symbol to signify the loss of multiple and is dedicated to working with bereaved parents.

Reading To Your Baby

Reading to your newborn in the NICU can help with neurological development and helps soothe.  Read all of the benefits to reading to your baby.

Medela

Medela is a valuable resource in the NICU and beyond for breastfeeding products and lactation support. For details more about Medela visit their website.

These resources were helpful to us during our time in the NICU.  

Please see our community section for a growing list of other resources available to you!

Contact 

For any inquiries or bulk order discounts, please contact Little Ward Books.

LittleWardBooks@gmail.com

Get NICU Milestone Cards

The mission of Beads of Courage, Inc. (a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization) is to provide innovative arts-in-medicine programs for children coping with serious illness, their families, and the clinicians who care for them.

Through Beads of Courage® we help children Record, Tell and Own their Story of Courage. Through the Beads of Courage® Program, children receive colorful beads that symbolize each step of their treatment journey. The beads they receive provide a powerful dose of narrative medicine that visually translates their treatment experience and helps them cope with the many uncertainties of their treatment journey. Every bead makes visible the otherwisethey receive provide a powerful dose of narrative medicine that visually translates their treatment experience and helps them cope with the many uncertainties of their treatment journey. Every bead makes visible the otherwise invisible. Beads of Courage® serve as metaphors that help the child and their family derive meaning from their experience, and help them connect to others in their life that might otherwise never comprehend all that they have been through.

  

Beads of Courage® Programs currently support more than 300 participating member hospitals in the United States, Japan, New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

 

To learn more please visit:  www.beadsofcourage.org.