Our Story
Every page exists because a NICU mother wished it did.
THE BEGINNING
In 2013, Lauren and her husband Alex were living in Chicago, expecting their first child. Their daughter Harper was born with a rare congenital diaphragmatic hernia, and she spent the first 51 days of her life in the NICU.
At her baby shower, Lauren had been gifted a beautiful baby memory book. She could only fill out a page or two. There were no pages for the first time she held Harper's hand through an isolette. No pages for the first time she got to hold her. No pages for the milestones that meant everything inside that room: a good day of rounds, a wire removed, an ounce gained.
She searched everywhere for a book that fit their journey. It didn't exist.
Why this book?
Made for the milestones the world never sees
First bottle feeds and first snuggles. A good day of rounds, a wire removed, an ounce gained. The moments that mean everything inside the NICU finally have pages of their own.
Every journey has a place here
From coming home days to goodbyes, these pages hold every possible story. Because every story deserves to be kept, however it unfolds.
The book Lauren needed and couldn't find
No book existed for her family's journey, so she created it. Now it's here for yours, written with the understanding only lived experience can bring.
Meet Lauren
Dr. Lauren Nelson is a chiropractor, a wife, and a mom. After their time in Chicago, Lauren and Alex returned home to Kansas City, where they live with their son Kaiper. Sunrise to Sunrise began as something deeply personal and became something she hopes will meet other NICU families exactly where they are: with understanding, with honesty, and with hope, one sunrise at a time.