Being a mother is a privilege, and each child is a gift—even more if a woman has been waiting for it a long time. Every woman’s journey towards motherhood is unique and inspiring for others who long for their own child.

 That is exactly what viral photos of pregnant moms, and then eventually with their babies, have become.

 The first photo (above) shows seven pregnant women dressed in the colors of the rainbow. The second one (below) shows the same women now dressed in white, carrying their babies dressed in the spectrum of colors—“rainbow babies.”

 Like a rainbow after a storm, a rainbow baby is a baby that is born following a miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death or infant loss, explains blogger Chastity Boatman, who writes about pregnancy and birth struggles in her blog Every Child is A Blessing, and runs the Facebook page which posted the photos. “I have not experienced the loss of a baby myself, but I am adopted, and the purpose of my blog is to help heal women from a child-related loss,” she tells Yahoo Parenting.

 Photographers Natalia Karpovovy and Elena Gannenko took the photos as part of a competition by a Russian photography site named Puzi Raduga, which is Russian for “Rainbow Bellies.” According to the website, the contest aims to elevate the status of pregnant mothers in society.

The photo has been shared more than 80,000 times, with some moms sharing their “rainbow baby” stories. Some mothers are even tagging their kids, who didn’t know that they were rainbow babies themselves.

Photos from ok.ru.

Sources:

September 23, 2015. “Powerful Photo of Moms and Their Babies Inspires Without Saying a Word” (yahoo.com)
September 25, 2015. "Rainbow Babies: Photo Give Hope To Expectig Mothers Who've Have MIscarraiges and Stillbirths" (boredpanda.com
September 26, 2015. “Stunning 'rainbow babies' photo inspires stories of loss, joy and hope” (today.com)