Abby and Matt Howard shared something huge with their followers: They’re expecting another baby, just six months after losing their unborn daughter. For anyone following them, this news hits hard.
It’s exhilarating, yes, but it’s also full of that quiet strength you only see after someone has been through the worst and somehow finds hope again.
Abby and Matt Howard’s happy news: A new chapter after a devastating loss
Matt and Abby are working to grow their family. On March 24, they posted a photo on Instagram, both kissing, smiling and holding ultrasound photos. “Baby #4. Incredibly grateful,” the caption read. They already have two little boys, Griffin (3) and August (2).The pregnancy news comes six months after they said Abby suffered a miscarriage with a baby girl.
Half a year ago, we announced that Abby lost her pregnancy at 17 weeks. According to People and her Instagram post, the doctor couldn’t find a heartbeat during what was supposed to be a routine checkup. Later, they learned that their daughter, Emerson Nicole, had a “genetic condition that took her life.”“The news seemed unimaginable,” they wrote, sharing a photo of their hands clasped tightly. “The grief is so devastating. But we feel so much gratitude for the time we had with her.
We still have hope. Hope has continued to show up for us in so many ways.In the months that followed, Abby spoke openly about what grief looked like for her. She described it as “the most devastating thing” she had ever experienced. But the pain, the guilt, the anger, the sadness, it all taught her something she never expected to happen. In a video last November, Abby said: “About a week ago, when I was just driving, I came to this conclusion that almost changed everything for me.”
For her, sadness is the price of love.
“I’m so sad because I loved so hard,” she said. She realizes that not everyone sees loss that way. It’s personal.On February 28, when Emerson was due due date, the couple posted again. “In another version of today, we might have been holding you for the first time. But that is not today. Today we are grieving for you: our daughter and our little sister. We grieve because we love (so much) and we will carry your love with us for the rest of our lives.”
Happy due date, dear Emerson Nicole.There is more behind the name they chose. On their podcast “Unplanned,” Abby shared that she has a stillborn sister, a year older, named Emily Nicole. “So we named her Emerson, and they share this middle name, which was really meaningful to us. Our nurse, who was literally an angel to us when we delivered her, her name was Nicole as well. So it seemed very appropriate, very appropriate for our family.”
But this name was chosen after she learned that her heart was not beating.
…This is something no parent wants to go through.
Abby and Matt Howard: Who are they?
For the unversed, Matt and Abby Howard are part of a wave of creators who have built their audience by being real. They started letting people into their lives, talking about marriage, parenting, and all the messy and honest things in between. TikTok, YouTube, and their podcasts; Wherever they appear, they have the same vibe: open, unfiltered, inviting people in.When they lost Emerson, it would have been gone. Instead, they brought everyone along for the ride, even when it became rough and painful. They talked about loss and heartbreak and everything else that comes with it. Now, as they share this new chapter, it’s clear that their desire to be vulnerable is what’s keeping people rooting for them.
