It was the kind of news that leaves a family struggling to understand how everything could change in just a matter of hours.

Little Ridge Watts had celebrated his eight-month milestone only two days earlier. His parents, Annsley and Bailey, were proud of how far their little boy had come since his birth on August 11.

Then, on a beautiful Sunday morning, their world changed forever.

At 11:35 a.m., Ridge passed away after suddenly experiencing severe breathing difficulties. He was just eight months old.

Ridge, from Evergreen, Alabama, had been born with Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a rare condition that makes the skin extremely fragile and can also affect the body’s internal tissues. There is currently no cure.

From his earliest days, life was a constant journey of care and patience.

Several times each day, Annsley and Bailey carefully changed the bandages covering Ridge’s delicate skin. They watched over him closely, learning to care for his needs while trying to give their baby as normal and happy a childhood as possible.

And through it all, Ridge rarely complained.

“He never cried,” his family remembered. He was seldom cranky, even as his parents tended to his fragile skin day after day.

Instead, Ridge became known for his smile.

His parents were overjoyed watching that smile appear more often as he grew. It became one of the brightest parts of their lives — a tiny expression that seemed to say that despite everything he had been through, their little boy was still finding reasons to be happy.

But Ridge’s journey was not without further challenges.

In the months before his passing, he had also been battling an infection involving his right eye. He received treatment several times a week as his parents continued doing everything they could to keep him comfortable and moving forward.

He kept showing his parents just how much strength could exist in such a tiny body.

Ridge began having difficulty breathing, and paramedics rushed him to Children’s of Alabama by helicopter.

When he arrived in Birmingham, doctors immediately began working to save him.

For 27 minutes, the medical team fought to bring Ridge back. But despite every effort, they could not save him.

“He was having difficulty breathing this morning,” Annsley said afterward. “When Ridge was taken off the chopper in Birmingham, doctors worked on him for 27 minutes. They couldn’t get him back.”

For his parents, the speed of what happened has been almost impossible to comprehend.

“It happened so fast,” Annsley said.

Just two days earlier, they had been celebrating eight months with the little boy who had overcome so much.

They had celebrated his smiles, his progress and every ordinary moment that felt extraordinary because of everything Ridge had already faced.

And now, they are left with memories of a baby who taught them more about courage than they could ever have imagined.

Ridge’s life was short, but his journey was filled with determination. He faced a condition with no cure, endured countless hours of careful treatment, battled an infection affecting his eye and continued moving forward despite the challenges surrounding him.

Most importantly, he never lost his ability to smile.

For Annsley and Bailey, that smile will remain one of their most precious memories.

Their little boy may no longer be in their arms, but the courage he showed during his eight months of life will stay with them forever.

Perhaps that is Ridge’s lasting gift — a reminder that even during the hardest days, there can still be a reason to smile, to keep going and to hold on to hope.