An "Outside the Box" gift idea

If you are looking for an “outside the box gift idea” for a pregnant woman in your life, Cryo-Cell is just that. When I had my two sons I got bombarded with flyers and information about cord blood banking but I did not act on it and I know it is just a great service that I wish I had.

Cryo-Cell’s U-Cord stem cell preservation service preserves a babies cord blood since it is rich in stem cells that are normally found in bone marrow. Stem cells are the main cells that are responsible for producing all the mature blood and immune system cells. The cells are cryopreserved for future stem cell treatments and transplants for conditions such as leukemia, sickle cell disease, and other forms of anemia and severe combined immunodeficiency. Your stem cells are difficult to obtain, due to strict matching requirements in your body, and these cells are guaranteed to match your baby and possibly match a sibling (1 in 4 chance) for his or her lifetime.

Now I know that my blog is about saving money and Cryo-Cell is expensive, but as a mom of 2 boys who have had health problems I feel the need to mention this service. My one son was born with a heart condition and at 4 months he had open-heart surgery, with another surgery needed at around 6-10 years old. This condition is not hereditary nor do I have another other major conditions in my family so this was completely unexpected. My other son was born 1 month early and had to spend the first nine days in the hospital NICU because his lungs were not fully developed and he was not eating. I was lucky that my sons did not need or have anything involving stem cells but every parent thinks something like that will never happen to their child. I would probably blame myself if one of my sons needed a cell treatment and a match was not readily available and if I would have just had their cord blood banked I would not have had a problem.

I know this service is not for everyone especially in today’s tough economic times, but I just wanted to throw this service out there as an option. You can purchase gift cards for Cryo-Cell in $50 increments.