Mother’s Day is a trigger for bereaved Moms. I experience this every year, even seven years after my son Zachary died. I’m grateful for International Bereaved Mother’s Day as an opportunity to celebrate my bond with my child I carry in my heart. Still, the month of May can be hard. This is why I have put together a Mother’s Day book box to help women cope and care for themselves.

Expecting Sunshine Mother’s Day Book Box, what’s inside:

  • Book Expecting Sunshine: A Journey of Grief, Healing and Pregnancy After Loss, award-winning, bestselling memoir
  • Do Not Disturb #amreading doorhanger
  • Candle, 14-hour burn, smell: Creamy Chai Cinnamon Swirl, color: Sparkly Pink Pumpkin
  • Limited Edition painted original artwork bookmark, signed by the artist, with painting-grid
  • 3-Blank greeting cards with envelopes, message on the front: “Thank You”
  • Tin of gourmet jelly beans
  • Hand-stitched Expecting Sunshine journal
  • Twinings of London Earl Grey tea
  • Keychain with acrylic encouragement card reading “Hope after the storm” and metal “Love” bangle
  • Resources from PALS (Pregnancy After Loss Support) including “10 Facts about Pregnancy After Loss,” brochure, and washable tattoo
  • Recipe: Pina Colada Pancakes, from The Pancake Inventor’s Notebook, by David Leech & Lizzy Davies (available on Amazon)
  • Expecting Sunshine bookmark

A great deal of thought has gone into the Expecting Sunshine book box. Being a bereaved Mom, who has walked the grief-healing journey, I hoped to create a compassionate experience for others. The box provides the opportunity to put the “Do Not Disturb” doorhanger up on the door, to make self-care a priority. You then pour yourself a cup of Early Grey tea, savor the gourmet jelly beans, light the candle, and set the mood. Slip into your comfortable clothes, cuddle-up on the couch, in bed or your favorite chair. You can read the memoir, or write in the journal, or even just binge watch on Netflix. The Expecting Sunshine book box is an invitation to take care of yourself. As women, we are often great at caring for others, but need a little encouragement to do it for ourselves.

One of the most special pieces of the book box is the painted bookmarks. I was encouraged by my friends to create a painting inspired by my book cover. I painted the teal, cloudy sky, and the vibrant, hopeful umbrella from the cover of Expecting Sunshine memoir. The painting was 7 feet wide by 6 feet tall. I then cut the painting into one-of-a-kind bookmarks, each piece unique, numbered to find its location in the grid, and complete with artist’s signature. The idea behind this is that we are all pieces of a greater whole, and when one of us is down, the rest can lift that person up. It’s a metaphor that resonates deeply with me. I have been giving out these bookmarks at my in-person events since Expecting Sunshine was released April 20017. It is special to know that your piece of the painting, that you will receive in the book box, might be next to a piece owned by someone in New York City, Calgary Alberta Canada, or Auckland New Zealand. I encourage people to use the painted bookmark as a meditation piece. It’s tactile, perfect to hold, and infused with meaning.

Here’s a short video showing you exactly what is in the book box:

Here’s a longer video where I talk about the meaning behind the contents of the book box:

Mother’s Day and International Bereaved Mother’s Day are opportunities to honor the Mothers in your life, including YOU. Whether you are shopping for yourself or your mom, grandma, friend, wife, or partner, the Expecting Sunshine Book Box is a unique and thoughtful idea.

 

You can order the book box by clicking here.

Expecting Sunshine: A Journey of Grief, Healing and Pregnancy After Loss memoir and journal, by Alexis Marie Chute

Gourmet jelly beans and handmade candle: 14-hour burn, smell: Creamy Chai Cinnamon Swirl, color: Sparkly Pink Pumpkin

Expecting Sunshine bookmark, key chain, door-hanger, and earl grey tea.

One-of-a-kind painted bookmark by author-artist Alexis Marie Chute.

Blank Expecting Sunshine theme thank you cards.

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