A Sunshine baby is one born before a loss. Most babies are Sunshine babies, pure happiness and joy after a normal pregnancy and birth. You don’t, however tend to call them a Sunshine baby until after you suffer a loss – before then they’re just a normal baby after all!
I never got to have a Sunshine baby. I lost my first born, my Cloud baby (regularly called an Angel baby) losing me the chance to ever have a Sunshine baby. Any future babies will also be Rainbow babies, they are also after the storm of suffering baby loss, the pregnancy is a different experience, no longer carefree, you KNOW what can happen.
My blog is about remembering my Cloud baby, Effy-Mae, and raising a Rainbow, Jackson, however I find myself writing posts that wouldn’t look out of place on a normal parenting blog. So is raising a Rainbow really that different to raising a Sunshine baby?
Yes, it is, but of course they overlap. They’re children and you’re a parent after all. You face the same issues, lack of sleep, mess, worries about losing friends, and people sticking their ore in, but as a Rainbow baby they come with their own set of worries, you know how it feels to lose a baby so you’re overprotective and nervous.
Looking back through my blog now I see the majority of my recent posts are about Jackson. This has become more apparent with Effy-Mae’s birthday looming and my sudden desire to write about her, it now stands out that I have been neglecting writing about her recently, wrapped up in Jackson. He’s hard work and time consuming and always hanging off my leg making it easy to write about him, however I find it hard and emotionally draining to write about Effy-Mae. I tend to end up in tears and I don’t like letting Jackson see me like that.
There will be a flurry of posts about Effy-Mae around her anniversary and her birthday, some written a while ago as I have to write about her when I feel I can, but make no mistake, the after effects of baby loss are far reaching and long lasting and I will continue writing about it.
Trying To Be A Good Mummy 
CGsaysstuff
/ Friday 29th May 2015Please do continue! I, too, am raising a ‘rainbow’, having lost my first baby. I began my blog to share my loss story and find a way to heal. This June marks two years since I lost her. My blog has evolved but my loss journey filters in from time to time and I struggle to find some consistency in my posts.
You’re right, though, theffects are long lasting and I’ve no doubt that raising a rainbow baby has perhaps a larger dose of irrational panic and fear than raising a sunshine baby.
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TryingToBeAMummy
/ Saturday 30th May 2015Thankyou for your comment and sorry I didn’t reply sooner – I find it hard to sit down and type with a little one running around!!
I love writing my blog, but yes it’s hard to keep direction when you have two very different stories to tell! But I’m sure that whatever we end up writing is heartfelt and keeps our little girls memories alive.
Thankyou for reading my blog!
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Shane Matthews
/ Monday 5th June 2017I’m a rainbow baby. . My mother had 6 miscarriages before me. . About 10 years ago my girlfriend had a miscarriage. So we have had a cloud/angel baby together. .
And I never knew of any of these terms till about an hour ago. .
Thank you for pointing this out to me. .
Shane
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TryingToBeAMummy
/ Monday 5th June 2017I’m so sorry to hear about all the losses in your family, I’m glad you have discovered these terms, they often give comfort to families, I know my rainbow baby has a rainbow bedroom to keep the memory of his sister around (he wouldn’t be a rainbow without her)
X
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Shane matthews
/ Monday 5th June 2017A rainbow bedroom a lovely idea. .
You know I Google the vinegar out of it. . And your blog by far explaned things for me better than any site out there. .
Thanks again for that. .
Shane.
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Mimi Ross
/ Thursday 15th June 2017I lost a child in September on September 11th of all days as if I can forget….I am now preggo again…and tonight someone on Facebook referred to the baby as a ‘rainbow baby’ and I had no clue what that meant. I googled it and found this blog. I had 4 miscarriages and 1 stillborn before I finally gave birth to my son who is now 6 years old. So my experience is almost as Shane Matthews mother. I then lost my child last year due to a blighted ovum and this now makes the 8th pregnancy. I love rainbows, always have. 8 also happens to be my favorite number. I hope this Rainbow #8 child survives. Thanks for this blog which has given me some comfort and hope. GOD bless!
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Nana
/ Friday 8th September 2017Wow my daughter is having a jackson after losing 2 angels last year my rainbow grandson
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Debbie Goins
/ Monday 28th May 2018My first daughter was full-term and stillborn nearly 34 years ago. It breaks my heart for others when I see the heartache from the most devastating loss I can imagine. The only thing more painful was when my grandson spent 3 months in the NICU as he was born at 24 weeks gestation and then he didn’t survive because of a group B staph infection.
I had two normal healthy children after Krista. I was the most nervous pregnant mom I knew. And worried about their safety constantly because I knew how the loss of a child felt and I never wanted to experience that again. So sorry for those who’ve had multiple losses – how heartbreaking. Lord Jesus, comfort them!
Even after 34 years I still cry sometimes when I talk about Krista. You never forget and you love and miss them always.
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