You don’t expect a 24-year-old to hold a house of nine together—twin boys, four younger sisters, and a grief that still knocks the wind out of you—but Chantelle does it with a stubborn love that feels like home. From Seville Place pride to years of relentless bullying, from a dad who died of cancer in prison to a mam who lit every room she walked into, her story is a map of heartbreak and the hands that carry you through it.

We trace the moment her waters broke at nineteen weeks—just a day after Kelly’s stage four diagnosis—and the long weeks that followed: memory boxes prepared, temporary hospital releases to sit by her mam’s bed, and the emergency section that brought Chester and Chase into a packed NICU. Born survivors, home in two weeks, two small suns for a house bracing for goodbye. Dublin rallied: fundraisers, pink streets, “Kelly from the block” on every poster. A last-chance trip to Germany, difficult choices, and then palliative care, music at the bedside, rain and sun at the graveside. Hard mercies, honestly told.

Chantelle opens up about becoming a legal guardian with her nanny, the daily choreography of school bags, hairbrushes, and dinners, and the quiet heroism of her partner Daryl and the neighbours who never stopped showing up. She shares practical advice on spotting bullying—withdrawal, appetite shifts, dropped hobbies, compulsive scrolling—and straight talk on checking phones, calling schools, and meeting the other family with calm resolve. There’s warmth too: her love of cooking, the Instagram that unexpectedly took off, and the way food keeps Kelly’s voice in the room.

This is a grief story that refuses to be only sad. It’s a survival story that doesn’t pretend to be easy. And it’s a love story—of a mam whose laugh arrives before she does, and of a daughter who keeps her promises. If this conversation moves you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs hope, and leave a review to help more listeners find these voices.

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