This might be the toughest thing I’ve ever had to write. Many who are reading this already know that our precious little girl has left this world. Cecilia Hope Sparrow past away on Sunday, February 17 just after 10 a.m. 

There will be a funeral service in Cece’s honor on Friday, February 22 at 1 p.m. at Hibben United Methodist Church, located at 690 Coleman Blvd., Mount Pleasant, SC 29464. In lieu of flowers, we ask for donations to be made in Cece’s name to MUSC’s Children’s Hospital in designation of “Kids Heart Health” at https://givenow.musckids.org/

All parents know that their children will change them in one way or another. I had no idea that Cece would change me so profoundly. I was never the girl who always dreamt of being a mommy. I am admittedly the least maternal out of all my friends. I found great pride in being a mother who also had a career. I never followed any mommy blogs or knew what milestones my daughters should hit and when. 

Cece made me a better mother. She transformed me into a mother who would rely solely on her instincts to a mother who would back those instincts with scientific research and articles to support my demand for the best care for my child. 

There have been times in my career when I’ve had to design custom webpages and emails for employers and clients. To do so takes many lines of long, and sometimes complicated, code. If one number, one letter or one character is missing from that code, what I was trying to create will not function or even appear at all. That isn’t true for God’s creations. Cece was missing 50 genes. She was still a beautiful, living, breathing baby with the bluest eyes that made you feel whole when looking into them. Even though she was missing lines of code she was still perfect.

Cece’s story is not over. We asked for her to be evaluated for organ donation and surprisingly enough her heart valves were perfect for donation. Cece’s valves can save a child’s life and prevent them from having repeat surgery as her valves will grow as the child grows. Maybe one of Cece’s valve recipients will grow up to be the greatest president in US history, or maybe a talented doctor who will help cure cancer, or maybe they will grow up to be a parent to a sweet little blue eyed baby that will give them true purpose in life.