For the weeks leading up to our annual Preemie Picnic, we were glued to the weather forecast, which stubbornly kept predicting rain. We told everyone we were going for it anyway, and closed our eyes tight and said “It’s not going to rain, it’s not going to rain” a million times over. Maybe we should have stopped at 999,999, because instead of rain we had the hottest, sunniest day of the year so far.
But guess what? The predictions of rain didn’t stop our families from coming, and the blazing heat didn’t keep us from having a great time! NICU families and staff are too tough for that.
As always, we have so many people to thank. The Toronto Firefighters Association gave us a bouncy castle again, and the firefighters themselves turned up and let our kids climb all over their shiny fire truck!
The Space Chums gave a fantastic performance and we hope they come dazzle us again. Whittamore’s Farm not only gave us flats and flats of the most delicious strawberries, but they also gave us farm passes for all our families!
ToroLUG came with their LEGO creations and tons of play brick for the kids. Thanks to the Linden Fund for T-shirts and tents; you always come through for us! We also had a special guest, wonderful author Hilary Leung, who read from Ninja Cowboy Bear AND The Pirate Girl’s Treasure. We were so happy to hear a young fan, leaving the picnic, shouting “NINJA COWBOY BEAR” over and over again. We hope his parents enjoyed the ride home.
Thank you to the amazing grounds crew who not only worked miracles getting the site ready, but who went above and beyond all day. We could not have done it without them.
Thank you to our volunteers who painted faces, handed out pizza, did hand prints, ran the bubble station and managed the craft station. Thank you to our champion cupcake maker who made 400 cupcakes! We are so grateful. Thank you to all the staff members who turned up and magically made everything happen. Events like this serve as such a great reminder of what a wonderful team we have.
And most of all, thank you to all the families who came. As one of our nurses says every year, “This is my version of a Christmas bonus.” We hope you know what a gift it is when you come and share your happy families with us.
In a few weeks, we’ll be putting out a survey about the picnic, and we’re really interested in hearing what you have to say. For now, we’ve booked Sunday June 22 2014 as the next date. Thanks to those who shared photos with us!
