Help bring Baby Matteo back home

For the last 7 years, I have had countless surgeries, an entire ovary removal, countless appointments and treatments, and countless problems with my reproductive system that all ended in doctors telling me I would never conceive. When I first got pregnant, I knew not to get my hopes up; I just tried to make it out of the danger time zone without complications. Time went on, and my bond with this baby boy, my Matteo, seemed to grow exponentially by the second. Every kick felt, every day I spent preparing, every plan I had for us, I was so excited to live this life with my sweet boy. I went from feeling everything to feeling nothing at all. I went into labor at 33 weeks last week while I was out of state, and little Matteo stopped breathing after birth. As we were laying in the hospital bed without friends and family, I wanted nothing more than to jump out of that bed and RUN to take my healthy baby home. But I couldn't. I stayed with Matteo as long as I could, loving him, massaging his little feet, cleaning him up, giving him as many kisses as he could hold. And then it was time to go. I had to go. I had to go home without my firstborn baby. And that was the hardest thing I've ever had to do.

As I'm recovering from a really traumatic birth experience, I've had to make funeral arrangements to get my baby 500 miles back home so he can have a proper burial here. Every second he is there by himself is making my heart hurt even more. This was all very sudden, and I have spent months preparing for him to be at home with me, not preparing for a funeral. I want nothing more than for my baby to be laid to rest, here, where he belongs. A funeral home director quoted me $2800 to get him home and buried, so that's the goal. I have gone back to work early and increased my days from 8 hours to 12. My biggest roadblock right now is time. He can only be there 10 days, and I feel like I have wasted 2 of them by trying to do all of this myself.

Things are more expensive than they've ever been, and our wages haven't matched the cost of living increase, so I know people are struggling to live their own lives. So if you are able to donate any amount, share this post, or even just say a prayer if that's your thing, it would really mean a lot to my family. Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read this. Hug and kiss your family today, my friends; tomorrow might be further away than we realize.