It is with heavy heart that we share the story of our precious daughter, Elizabeth Ann Shaw. At around 21 weeks, she was diagnosed with a bilateral kidney birth defect. The prognosis was grim. Our hearts were completely shattered sitting in that dark, cold exam room…and even more so as I am being asked if we want to terminate our daughter’s life after they gave us news that no parent is prepared for. NO ONE is ever prepared to hear those words…talk about a complete GUT PUNCH! We had to not only prepare ourselves for the loss of our daughter upon birth, but also prepare our 2 little boys the best we could that their little baby sister they longed for was most likely going to be meeting Jesus face to face shortly after birth. How do you break that news to a 9 and 4 year old?
The months that followed were a blur. We went up to The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for a second opinion. We wanted to leave no stone unturned when it came to her care and being an advocate for our precious daughter. The staff at CHOP was absolutely wonderful and welcomed us with open arms. Unfortunately after a day full of testing, they arrived at the same grim outlook for our girl but we felt at peace knowing we tried different avenues to do all we could do in our power. We were left with the power of prayer. I was so grateful to have been able to carry her full term. I delivered her on August 23, 2022 at 7:31am. We were blessed to have 55 minutes with our daughter before she took her last breath here on Earth and gained her angel wings. We were also blessed with hearing her cry, which the doctor’s did not think would happen due to the underdevelopment of her little lungs. Her proud big brothers, Beckett and Hudson were able to meet and hold their little sister before she passed away. Many memories were made that day in the hospital as she was held by her grandparents and her aunt and uncles. She was also baptized wearing a beautiful christening gown that had been in our family for at least 5 generations. Our amazing photographer was able to capture so many special moments with our sweet Elizabeth Ann that we will keep in our hearts forever.
Last year was our 1st Duck Race and it was such a special day for our family. Seeing how many people came out to support our family was such an emotional experience. We thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for loving us through this journey!
Our family invites you to join our team, “Elizabeth Ann’s Angels” or adopt a duck from our team in support of KinderMourn. We would LOVE for you to join us on Sunday, April 28th at the US National Whitewater Center. Festivities begin at 2pm and the ducks splash at 3:30pm!
Thank you for taking to time to let us share our story with you!
Blessings,
Lauren, Dusty, Beckett, & Hudson Shaw
Team Elizabeth Ann’s Angels