On November 8th, 2021, Ellie developed sudden, severe pre-eclampsia and HELLP syndrome. After rushing her to the hospital and a quick blood test, she received an emergency C-Section and Cillian, our son, was born at 27 weeks, 3 months premature, but beautiful and perfect. Twenty-seven days later, his small body succumbed to an infection he picked up in the NICU, and Cillian was taken from us far too soon.

He fought hard every day of his life. He defied odds to even exist. And every day he was kicking and punching and charming the hearts of every nurse that came near him. There is a hole in our hearts that will never be healed. And 4 weeks will never be enough time, but we are grateful for every second that we had. From his love of his father’s bedtime stories to his ticklish toes (which he’s laughing about in the cover photo) to his uncanny ability to escape swaddling, Cillian is a spirit that was stronger than we’ve seen in many grown adults. We would never wish this pain on anyone. And a month later we're still struggling to recover, taking it one day at a time, but we will because he deserves to be remembered and honored every day.

Unfortunately, even though we haven't had enough time to heal, the medical bills from his 4 weeks in the hospital have started to arrive, and we need some help. Ian lost his job earlier this year after his mother passed, and Ellie is still healing and recovering from her emergency C-Section, so money is tight. NICU stays are incredibly expensive, and Cillian also had to be transferred from his birth hospital to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta - and of course, the neonatal ambulance ride was out-of-network.

Any funds we raise beyond the total cost of Ellie and Cillian's hospital stays will go toward helping us grow our family in a way that’s safer for Ellie's health

He was here, he mattered, and he was loved more than possible by his whole family.

Cillian Vincent, we love you more than the waking world, and always will.