Taylor Bates
All Posts Pregnancy Loss Grief Trying To Conceive PAL (Pregnancy After Loss) Book Reviews
Taylor Bates
Writer & Creative exploring mystical hope
 
 
 
 
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As a writer and host of the Rainbow Baby Podcast, I explore mystical hope through the lens of pregnancy loss and a life shaped by creativity. My work also extends into community placemaking at Sunset Ridge Church & Collective, where I help shape spaces of creativity, belonging, and ecological stewardship. Whether through story or place, I’m committed to cultivating environments where people can belong, imagine, and hope.

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A PODCAST about PREGNANCY AFTER LOSS

A Rainbow Baby is defined as a baby born subsequent to a miscarriage, stillbirth, TFMR, or the death of an infant from natural causes. This podcast follows Taylor through her journey to a rainbow baby after her son, Ellis, was stillborn in May 2018. Also included are honest and hopeful conversations with others sharing their own Rainbow Baby stories including trying to conceive after loss, pregnancy, recurrent loss, adoption, and parenting after loss. 

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Latest from the blog...
33 Weeks Pregnant
33 Weeks Pregnant

My body is achy, swollen, and slow moving, but I am so in love with this smiley babe.

32 Weeks Pregnant
32 Weeks Pregnant

32 Weeks and babe’s hand is the size of a macaroon.

Our Rainbow Baby Shower
Our Rainbow Baby Shower

We rounded out this past week with a drive-by baby shower—it was lovely!

31 Weeks Pregnant
31 Weeks Pregnant

A “Cold front” in Texas means I get to bust out my maternity jeans for the first time during this pregnancy. The last time I wore them was when I was 31 weeks pregnant with Ellis, the week he was stillborn.

30 Weeks Pregnant
30 Weeks Pregnant

My perinatal specialist surprised me with this 3D image on Tuesday. She didn’t tell me that she was going to do a scan in 3D so I was shocked when I saw him clearly for the first time.

29 Weeks Pregnant
29 Weeks Pregnant

The countdown has begun! We’ve got eight weeks until our scheduled C-section, and I’m anticipating that it’s going to fly by.

25 Weeks Pregnant
25 Weeks Pregnant

25 weeks pregnant and babe is somewhere around the size of a papaya. My uterus is the size of a soccer ball. And my body is feeling it. Is it okay for loss moms and women who’ve struggled conceiving to complain about aspects of pregnancy? Yes!

23 Week Pregnancy Scan
23 Week Pregnancy Scan

This smile melts my mama heart. I got to see his sweet little face for the first time this week at my 23 week scan.

22 Weeks Pregnant
22 Weeks Pregnant

Weeks 21-22 pregnancy update: Baby B is the size of an eggplant—about a foot long (head to toe) and a little over a pound! My belly feels like it’s growing and stretching more everyday, much more quickly than it did during my first pregnancy.

20 Weeks Pregnant
20 Weeks Pregnant

20 week pregnancy update. Baby B is the length of a banana. I’ve been nesting quite a bit and have been more quiet and internal over the last several weeks. There’s a lot going on in the world. For me, now is a time for contemplation, internal work, and staying home.

Father's Day
Father's Day

Happy Father’s Day to my love, Hunter. It fills me with joy to see the ways you spiritually father Ellis and are already building a relationship with his little brother...

16 Weeks Pregnant
16 Weeks Pregnant

Baby is the size of a naval orange and I’ve definitely got a visible bump now! I started feeling the baby kick consistently this week, which is just the best.

15 Weeks Pregnant
15 Weeks Pregnant

15 week update—it was a big week! I had an appointment with my perinatal specialist that went great—they basically did an early anatomy scan and the baby is growing right on track.

Ellis’ Second Stillbirthday
Ellis’ Second Stillbirthday

Today was magical, bittersweet, joyful, peaceful, tearful, and gentle.

Ellis’ Tree
Ellis’ Tree

This past week we planted a mountain laurel tree in the front yard of our new house.

14 Weeks Pregnant
14 Weeks Pregnant

14 weeks and our baby boy is the size of a pear! I’m getting a bit more comfortable (out of necessity) going to prenatal appointments alone due to the pandemic.