The aim of Monique Hession, founder and owner of Australian brand Snuggle Hunny Kids, is to produce beautiful parenting essentials with a purpose. The brand sells stylish and practical must-have items, such as swaddles, muslin wraps, bibs, bonnets and booties – but more importantly, it offers a community of support for mothers and #snugglehunnykids, via Instagram, as well as beyond.
Snuggle Hunny Kids supports families whose babies are born too soon or too sick and therefore need to stay in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) until they are strong enough to go home with their mum and dad. Aside from the challenging situation of having a baby too unwell to come home, the impersonal, clinical setting does not make the situation any easier. Many pre-mature babies require breathing tubes and are wired up to vital clinical equipment to help monitor their condition. This can be an extremely confronting sight for worried parents, with the usual NICU departments’ stark surroundings, including plain sheets and wraps, doing little to provide a soothing or hopeful environment.
To help sick babies’ families cope and to brighten their day, the brand has been donating colourful, soft blankets, wraps and sheets to NICUs across Australia, after Monique put out a call on social media for nurses to nominate their units – receiving over 50 emails in just one day. “We didn’t realise how much this meant to mums who were concerned and emotionally stressed in NICU and how underfunded these hard working units are,” Monique said.
The thousands of thank you notes the brand has already received from parents who have had children in NICUs, is what truly makes Snuggle Hunny Kids ‘home to the Snuggle’.
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