A mum-to-be saw something on her unborn son’s scan that made her cry ‘happy tears’.
Samantha Stoney, 29, was shocked to discover the foetus mimicking her late grandfather by interlacing his fingers just like he did every single day – all while in the womb.
Photos show her late grandad Arnold Spencer, 87, sitting with his hands resting over each other under his chin, fingers interlinked, just as Samantha’s unborn baby did in the 4D scan.
Samantha says she was ‘very close’ to Arnold and used to visit him every day for a chat before he passed away in January 2017, so when she found out she was pregnant with her first child in June, she was sure Arnold would have been thrilled to be a great-grandad.
When her unborn son appeared to mimic her grandad’s pose during his 26-week scan, Samantha burst into tears as she felt it was a sign from Arnold that he was looking down on them both.
Samantha, from Leyland, Lancashire, described it as an ‘amazing’ feeling, adding: ‘When we went for the 4D scan at the clinic, I thought, “that’s my grandad”. It was an instant reaction.’
The expecting first-time mum said while she ‘didn’t know what to expect’ from the scan, she ‘definitely’ felt as though it was a sign from her grandad as ‘he would have liked to have been a great-grandfather’.
Samantha explained:
My grandad died two years ago, and I spent every day with him. For 27 or 28 years, I went around to see him every single day. Even if it was just for five minutes, I would go around to see if he was okay.
I was very close to my grandad. He was always there for me and he only lived around the corner. He was always sat in his chair with his fingers together.
Speaking about the resemblance, Samantha said:
I’m not sure if he looks like him yet. My son seems to be cheeky. I’ve got another scan picture where he’s pulling his tongue out. My grandad was like that, always having a laugh and giggling.
I think my grandad would be very, very happy for me and he’d spoil him. He always used to spoil us. There aren’t many boys in our family so I think he’d be really happy. He would have liked to show him what he used to do when he was younger.
The mum-to-be, who works as a shopkeeper, said she ‘can’t wait’ to be a mum as it’s ‘going to be an amazing experience’. Her pregnancy has been smooth so far, with no morning sickness, which Samantha puts down to her grandad ‘definitely watching out for [her]’.
Now she plans to tell her son all about his great-grandad, and will obviously show him photos of their matching pose in his baby scan.
What a happy coincidence.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).