‘I dreamt of my tragic girl’s wedding day’
THE mother of little Annabel Loughlin told mourners at the child’s funeral yesterday that she had dreamt of one day seeing her beautiful daughter wear a wedding dress when she got married herself.
The heartbroken parents of threeyear-old Annabel, who died in a tragic accident in the family home in Co. Westmeath last week, both gave extremely moving eulogies to their daughter, who had ‘a smile that would light up heaven’.
Annabel’s mother Eileen said her daughter meant so much to so many people, and for a little girl, she lived life to the fullest. The youngster was the only daughter of former Westmeath hurler Enda Loughlin and Eileen, who also have two sons, Senan and TJ.
Ms Loughlin yesterday addressed hundreds of mourners gathered in the Church of the Assumption in Delvin, Co. Westmeath.
She said: ‘From the moment I knew I was having a baby, I really hoped it was going to be a girl.
‘I always wanted a girl. I was brought up with my sisters and really wanted a girl.
‘I’d picture her Christening, her wedding; I pictured her when she was a mummy.’
Large crowds arrived on a cold, wet and windy day yesterday to say goodbye to Annabel in the same church where just a short threeand-a-half years earlier, she was baptised by her great-grand-uncle Fr John Fagan.
Mourners heard that Annabel was a fiercely independent.
Ms Loughlin said: ‘We used to always call her Ms Independent, a name she actually took to herself when we’d say, “Who are you?”, and she would say “I’m Ms Pendent”.
‘I wanted to see what you would grow up to be, Annabel, because I knew you could be anything.’
Ms Loughlin added: ‘You had the beauty, the brains, the personality, the determination.
‘I wanted to hug you when you had boy troubles, I wanted to watch you fall in love. I wanted to sit and watch you chose your perfect wedding dress, I wanted to watch you have babies because you told me you wanted to be a mommy.
‘I really don’t know if life will ever be okay again without Annabel.’
The child’s father Enda also paid tribute to his daughter.
Mr Loughlin spoke about how he called Annabel his ‘little woman’ and said she would always reply to him with, ‘My dada’.
‘She was persistence personified,’ he said. ‘If she wanted it, by God she would go get it.
‘Believe me, if you met her, you wouldn’t forget her.’
Annabel was laid to rest at Taghmon Cemetery after the ceremony.