My daughter was born 8 weeks prematurely with a cleft palate .

As a new mother I had no idea what to expect and how this condition would affect my baby. I soon realized I could not breastfeed my newborn baby but would have to feed her through a feeding tube in order for her to gain weight.  After 6 months of tube feedings we were able to transition her to a speciality bottle.  The staff at Sick Kids Hospital made this seamless and I want to thank the feeding team for being such amazing teachers.

Mia was 15 months when she received her cleft palate surgery at Sick Kids Hospital. It was a 5 hour procedure and was a total success! My daughter is now 3 years old and is thriving, we are so very blessed to have her in our lives.

Art for Smiles is an initiative we wanted to start to help children in foreign countries with cleft palate and lip conditions. This is the second year of the project, having raised $1,950 last year. We are so excited to raise more funds and awareness for children born with cleft conditions.

Every donation of $50 dollars or more will receive one of Mia's abstract art paintings.