Elyza Taylor

          Baby Elyza by NILMDTS Affiliated Photographer Melanie Rodger

My spouse and I were expecting our second child to arrive in early March of this year. Everything had been going well during the pregnancy. Elyza measured where they were supposed to, had a strong heartbeat, and the pregnancy itself was a happy and healthy one. That is, until mid-February, when everything changed.

One night, I noticed Elyza had stopped moving as much as they normally did. I assumed they were just sleeping and went to bed myself. The next morning, they still weren’t moving, so I decided to drive myself to our hospital 45 minutes away to get checked out. I left my spouse and our firstborn at home, thinking nothing of it, assuming I’d be there and back rather quickly. I’ll never forget the series of events that followed.

When I arrived at the hospital, I was taken up to labor and delivery to get checked out. The first nurse used the standard wand to find a heartbeat, and I noticed she was having trouble, but I figured Elyza had just flipped over.

More and more people entered the room as they brought in a full ultrasound machine. When they scanned over Elyza’s heart, there was no movement. I saw the nurse with the wand slowly shake her head to her colleagues, and in that moment, I knew our lives …