Sophia Haselum

Our beautiful daughter Sophia Haselum was born ten days overdue on 5th April 2007. She fell asleep an hour after her birth. She was 9lbs and was the most beautiful baby girl. Below is the letter her parents Jeff and Josephine wrote to her and was read out at her funeral on 17th April 2007.

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A letter to Sophia

To our beautiful daughter Sophia…

When we first found out that we were expecting you back in July 2006, we were so excited and happy that we were having you. At that moment, two became three. It was also scary too but we knew that it was the greatest thing that had ever happened to us and would change all of our lives forever.

After a few short weeks, we got all of our family together for a meal in Manchester. There was Grand-dad and Grandma Nixon, Grand-dad and Nana Haselum, Aunties Caroline, Sara, Penelope and Uncle Mark. After we had eaten, your Daddy made an announcement and told everyone that we were expecting you. There was clapping, tears of joy and anticipation of your arrival. Even then at 6 weeks old you were a member of our family and you were loved without hesitation.

Mummy first felt you move when you were 20 weeks old, although your Daddy was very jealous as every time he went to feel you move, you would stop and go to sleep. It was 4 weeks later before Daddy felt you move and soon after you would always move to the sound of his voice and have a good wriggle around.

Mummy also began to develop some strange habits, such as eating mushy peas with pickled cabbage, as well as a chocolate habit that Willy Wonka would find hard to keep up with!

You were a lovely baby and very active, always moving and wriggling around, but we were happy because we knew you must have been enjoying yourself. We knew that you were having a good time and loved being inside Mummy, because you did not want to come out on the 25th March as you were supposed to, and we had to go to hospital 10 days later to hurry you up. Your Daddy was always late for everything so we were not surprised that you were as well.

With the help of the hospital, Mummy went in to labour on the 4th April and on the 5th April you were born at 7pm but an hour later, you fell asleep. It was then that we realised that you were such a beautiful and special baby that God wanted you in heaven and that you were not meant to be with us. We promise though with all of our hearts, that we will be reunited one day.

We held you and kissed you and we saw that you had the most beautiful soft white skin, with hair like your Daddy’s and even his hands and nose. You had Mummy’s eyes and cheeks and the same shaped mouth and were the most beautiful baby we had ever seen. We could not believe that we had made you and wished so much that we could take you home and look after you for the rest of our lives.

When you left us we felt as though a part of us would never be the same again and there will always be a hole that we can never fill. You were loved for over 9 months and we will love you for the rest of our lives.

The thing we wanted you to know is how much you were and would have been loved. Not just by Mummy and Daddy, but also by your Grandparents, Aunties, Uncle and friends that are here today.

We would have shown you the world and how wonderful it could be, helping you to become a good, honest woman, that felt that in this hard and difficult world that anything was possible and that all your dreams could come true.

Daddy always hoped that you would look like your Mummy and have her joy for life. He also wished you would have his sense of humour and love of Sci-fi – that way your Mummy would have to watch Star Trek and Stargate all the time and could not ever complain.

Your Mummy and Daddy hope to be blessed enough to have a family one day, and we will make sure that your brothers and sisters never forget their beautiful, perfect, older sister.

We miss you so much, but you will forever be our beautiful little angel and perfect, precious daughter. You are a part of our hearts, our souls and we will never stop loving you.

Sleep tight Sophia and never forget how much we love you.

Our love always,

Mummy and Daddy x

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Below are poems which were read out at Sophia's funeral.

God looked around his garden
And found an empty place,
He then looked down upon the earth
And saw your perfect face.

He put his arms around you
And lifted you to rest.
God's garden must be beautiful
He always takes the best.

It broke our hearts to lose you
But you didn't go alone,
For part of us went with you
The day God called you home.


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Ten tiny fingers,
Ten tiny toes,
Hair just like Daddy’s
And a cute button nose.
In short, you are perfect,
Not one single flaw,
But your eyes are sleeping
And will forever more

I held you in my arms that day,
I felt so honoured to,
I’ve held the smallest angel
And Sophia, that was you.
We have a very special place
Deep down inside our hearts,
We’ll hold you there forever
So we’ll never be apart.

So sleep now little angel,
It’s only your body that’s gone,
Because we loved and remember you,
You’ll live on and on.
Night, night beautiful baby,
We’ve prayed to heaven above
And asked God to look after you there,
Wrapped safe in eternal love.