This year is going so quickly, I cannot believe that in just 10 days we will be in to December.

Whilst this year has been such a positive one for our charity the increase in families contacting us means that there are so many more families trying to deal with the death of their baby or child.

December is always a busy month for families, you have the excitement of Christmas with the added stresses that it can bring. 
Parents worry that they cannot afford all the presents their children are asking for and then there is all the shopping. 

Families argue who they are going to spend the festivities with and you end up splitting yourself in so many ways.

When you become a family that has a baby or child in heaven Christmas can also be a very lonely and painful time.

You sit at home watching adverts all about children and toys. These are the things that can bring so much pain to bereaved families.

Whilst we are so happy for the families that are all able to spend the holidays with their loved ones, it also hurts knowing that they will never get to do that.

If you know a family that has been through a bereavement spare them a thought as December arrives. 

Maybe make that little more effort to check on them to make sure they are ok, or offer to go round for a coffee and a chat.

Bereavement can be very lonely and isolating and a lot of families find it difficult to reach out for help and support. 
By just knocking their door, or giving them a call and reaching out to them you could make so much difference to their current situation.

We find December difficult as we reach Charlies birthday and this year he would be turning 4. 
Our way of dealing with this time of year is to all get together and celebrate his birthday, usually doing something we think Charlie would enjoy. 
Whilst we know we will all still feel sad being together gives us all support and love to cope.

We know some families do not feel able to do that and having a friend to nip round during the festivities can make all the difference.

Lets try and make this December a time where we all try and offer friendship and support to other families.