One Ottawa baby is advancing through an annual contest with a celebrity connection that raises money for a non-profit. Smiley five-month-old Sasha Vuk Spelliscy has made it to the top 10 of their group in the Baby of the Year competition, which is hosted by Jessica Alba and raises money for a non-profit organization. “He is honestly such an amazing baby. He laughs so much and he just smiles and it just brightens up a room,” said Danijela Spelliscy, Sasha’s mom. “I love to watch him grow and just see the little man that he’s becoming.” Funds support Baby2Baby, a non-profit that provides essentials to infants, a cause that is close to the Spelliscy family’s heart after a health scare at the beginning of Sasha’s life. “We did have some health issues right from the beginning. He did stay at the NICU for 12 days,” said Spelliscy. “The first 12 days of his life, so we had to deal with that, but he is home now.” “It was after a bit of a rocky start, but since then he has been doing nothing but thriving,” said Brett Spelliscy, Sasha’s Dad. “He is always adorable, always smiling, always laughing, and he is just finding his voice now.” Sasha is now in the top ten of their group and will have the chance to advance to the quarter-finals of the competition. The winner is chosen by voters who donate to the non-profit based on the number of votes they cast. The grand prize is a shoot in Variety Magazine and $25,000. “We would put that away probably for Sasha’s education or growing up and doing sports, whatever he’d like to do with that,” said Spelliscy. Voting ends Nov. 5, and the final winner will be announced on Dec. 5. “He’s in eighth place right now,” said Spelliscy. “He kind of exemplifies the sort of adorable baby. He is grabbing toys, he loves to play, loves to smile, and loves to laugh.”
