Little Big Town’s Kimberly Schlapman Believes Daughter Daisy Is a Gift From Her Late Husband

By the time Little Big Town‘s Kimberly Schlapman married her second husband, Stephen Schlapman, she had already endured plenty of heartache. Schlapman lost her first husband, Steven Roads, suddenly to a heart attack in 2005, while Little Big Town was just getting their career started. Schlapman and Roads were trying to have a baby before Roads died, and she had given up on the idea of being able to conceive, when she got pregnant while on her honeymoon with her current husband, which she is sure was a gift from the one who passed away.

“In my previous marriage, I had tried so hard to have a baby, so there was already, I don’t want to say skepticism, but I was already pretty sure I wasn’t going to be able to conceive a child,” Schlapman told PEOPLE. “When we got pregnant on our honeymoon, it was just the most incredible gift. I believe that my first husband, who was in heaven, I believe he begged God, ‘Let’s give her what she’s always wanted for a wedding gift.’”

“I believe that with all my heart, and so I got pregnant on my honeymoon,” she added. “I know that was his wedding gift from heaven to me. I am 100 percent sure.”

Schlapman gave birth to Daily in July of 2007. It was Daisy who began asking God for a baby brother or sister. Schlapman chronicles the heartwarming story of how Daisy’s faith led them to adopt their daughter, Dolly, in the upcoming book, A Dolly for Christmas, after Schlapman’s attempts to conceive, failed.

“All along, [Daisy] was still praying every day. She was really excited now that we were in the adoption process and just had her little heart energized again for the possibility of a sibling,” Schlapman recalled. “Because her prayers weren’t answered how she wanted at the moment, she decided to take matters into her own hands. She wrote a letter to Santa Claus.”

“She is our absolute Christmas miracle,” Schlapman said of their daughter, who arrived shortly after Daisy made her plea to Santa Claus. Even though A Dolly for Christmas is written for children, Schlapman insists the message is for everyone.

“I just want people to be hopeful and to know that if they’re in the middle of a struggle, they are not alone,” Schlapman said. “We walked those same roads, and they are very, very difficult. But, in the end, there is restoration and there are children who are waiting for them.”

Photo Credit: Getty / Dia Dipasupil