The mum of murder victim Jack Woodley is expecting her fourth child in summer and declared the unexpected pregnancy was like a gift from her son.
Jack Woodley’s mother, Zoey McGill, said the 18-year-old teased her shortly before his death by telling she was going to have another baby in the family soon as he was planning to move in with his girlfriend.
Zoey, 37, from Newton Aycliffe, said: “He always used to wind me up that he would have a baby young because I had him young.
“I would say ‘don’t you dare’ because I did not want to be a grandma in my 30s.
“The night before Jack died we were in the caravan at the holiday park and he said I was going to be a Nanna soon.
“He said he was serious. I knew he was joking but I think he really wanted to settle down.
“He was just trying to run it past me to see how I would react.
“Now this has happened people are saying this is Jack saying: “Mam, you are not getting away with it.”
Zoey, who has two other sons, said she had previously hoped for a girl but now would like another boy.
She plans to use Jack as a middle name in memory of her ‘blue eyed boy’ who died the day after a savage gang attack as he left the Houghton Feast fun fair in October 2021.
Zoey, who is due on July 24, said: “I am hoping for a little boy because of losing Jack.
“I will probably give it the middle name Jack if it is a boy or a girl.
“I definitely want to do that, 100 per cent.
“I have not thought about the first name yet though.”
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Zoey and her husband, Chris, a bathroom fitter, received their happy news before Christmas but had no idea Zoey was expecting.
Zoey said: “I had gone back to work and was due to have an operation because I have been having all sort of issues.
“I thought I had an illness that was getting worse because for a month I had been throwing up and feeling sick.
“I was wondering what was wrong with me.
“They did a blood test and it came back that I was expecting.”
Zoey said the pregnancy is even more special because she did not think she could have any more children following an operation for endometriosis.
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She said: “Years ago we tried for a girl but it never happened so it did not cross our minds.
“I was six weeks pregnant when I found out and when I thought about it I had all of the symptoms of pregnancy so it was weird.
“We see it as a nice thing that has been sent to us from our Jack.”
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