As you open your new Maeband belly band you will find this quote written on the back of the packaging. These words hold a deeper meaning for me because the family I grew up in is made up of step, half, full, adoptive, and deceased siblings and parents- but each one is loved just the same and each one has formed and shaped our family into what it is now. And as we have grown to start our own families, we continue to add to this clan, becoming a fresh arrangement of family with each new child that joins us.

From the moment of conception and sometimes even before, we feel a great love for our unborn child. Through each stage of life, when they are born, take their first step, leave home for school, and start their own family, an overwhelming bittersweetness is felt. With the excitement and joy of each new moment, comes the mourning and loss of what is now only in our memories. We are in a constant state of eternal progression, in this world, and the one to come. Family is meant to support us through this progression and give us a greater knowledge and understanding of our purpose.

I grew to realize that families are all sorts and sizes, each one with their own unique bond, each one as equally important as the next, each one perfect in their own way. I have come to believe that all families can be together for eternity and that everyone on this earth is connected as brothers and sisters through an even bigger, eternal family. That we have a Father in Heaven and that we are all His children. Familysearch.org is one concrete way to recognize and see the links that bond us all together.

It is this belief, along with God’s help, that has given the Maeband family a deeper love and appreciation for mankind and moves us to want to give back to organizations or campaigns that are strengthening families and helping children. We have previously been doing this by donating to personal campaigns that have touched our hearts. We will still continue this practice, along with finding organizations that we feel inspired to volunteer with and/or donate a portion of each pregnancy belly band sale to.

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