Memorial Plans

This Saturday, October 1st, will be the one-year anniversary of our daughter Charlotte's death.

Charlotte was three weeks old when she died. It felt and feels like so much longer than 3 weeks. We watched her fighting for her life, having good and strong days separated by stretches of illness and uncertainty. We had the Do Not Resuscitate conversation, otherwise known as the "death talk," twice in regards to Charlotte. (As opposed to once each with Eliza and Oliver.) One week before Charlotte passed away she became extremely ill with a blood infection and a bowel perforation. She was so sick that the doctors were not willing to perform the same surgery they had on her sister a week before. But despite what the attending doctor that week predicted, Charlotte got a lot better. She came off all of the pressor medication she was on and everything was looking up. They performed the ostomy surgery and she made it through ok. Two days later everything was much, much worse. We spent about 36 hours barely leaving Charlotte's side watching her die. We kept hoping since she had pulled through before, she could do it again. But she didn't. She was just so tired and so sick. We got to hold her for the first and last time that night, to say goodbye.

We'll be gathering on Saturday with some of our immediate family members to hold a memorial service for Charlotte and Oliver and dedicate a stone marker in their memory. It'll be a tough day but a worthwhile one. Thoughts and prayers (especially around 1pm if you can spare a moment) would really mean a lot to us - like sending one big hug our babies' way.