We were ecstatic when we found out we were having our second child! However, very early on in the pregnancy it became crystal clear that something was wrong with our baby. The doctors diagnosed our unborn son with ineincephaly, and told us our best case option was a stillbirth.
Shocked by the news, but still hoping that everything would turn out alright, we made shirts, gave our son a name (Shouei is Japanese for exaltation and the characters individually mean holy and eternal) and planned to make as many memories as we could until he was born.
On January 6th, 2016, Shouei came into the world. He miraculously lived for 7 hours, afterwhich he returned to Heaven where he continues to watch over our family today. Losing a child has been the hardest experience of our lives, but hope and peace have displaced our despair because of our knowledge that we will be together again in Heaven.
Not knowing how much time we'd have together after his birth, we decided to make the most of the pregancy and make magical memories!
Thanks to wonderful friends and family, we have wonderful photos, videos and memories of our precious time together!
- The Book of Mormon, Moroni 7: 35-37
We believe in miracles!
During the pregnancy we were hoping our miracle would be that Shouei would get to live longer on earth--instead, we got stronger testimonies that Families Are Forever!
Below are just a few. For the full list see here.
The doctors said that he would be stillborn if he made it full-term, instead he lived for 7 hours--the most heavenly 7 hours of our lives!
Shouei "happened" to be in a position that made the c-section easier on Saori (no vertical cut necessary).
We received an outpouring of love from family, friends, community members and strangers through kind acts and prayers.
Even though Shouei is in Heaven, he remains a central part of our family! We remember and talk about him daily. And every year we have a birthday party where we wear his shirts and celebrate his life!
More Celebrations
Having gone through the tragic experience of losing a child we know that sometimes people need someone to talk to. If you or your loved ones want to talk, we're here to listen.
Even though death seems finite, our beliefs that families can be together forever really helped us through Shouei's death. We invite you to learn about these truths for yourself at:
© 2016 - Eternity. faMMMily
