Indianapolis Colts Center Ryan Kelly and Wife Thank God for Twins

Published: November 23, 2023

Indianapolis Colts Center Ryan Kelly and Wife Thank God for Twins

By Movieguide® Contributor

Indianapolis Colts center Ryan Kelly and his wife, Emma, are celebrating the birth of their twins.

“We prayed so long and so hard for days like yesterday…If you would have told me this time a year ago, we’d be standing where we are today, I’m not sure I could have believed you. THANK YOU, GOD are the only words I can seem to find lately,” Emma posted on Instagram.

In December 2021, the Kellys experienced the traumatic stillborn birth of their daughter, Mary Kate. Two years later, the couple are parents to twin sons, Duke and Ford.

“The Kellys are sitting on the couch in the basement of their Indianapolis home with their twin baby boys, Ford and Duke, in their arms. Their boys. Their sons. Not so long ago, neither of them knew if this beautiful thing called parenthood would ever become reality,” USA Today reported.

Despite the heartache of losing their daughter, the Kellys still hoped to become parents.

“I dreamed about the sleepless nights with babies waking up every hour. If I could just go back to the me a year ago and just hold her and let her know it was coming,” Emma said in an interview with USA Today, “because you don’t know if you’re ever going to get those days.”

Throughout 2022, the couple tried to get pregnant but couldn’t. They felt exhausted and hopeless.

“It was really heartbreaking,” Emma stated. “So, we were just in a really, really tough spot.”

The couple then began to talk about in vitro fertilization (IVF), but Emma wasn’t sure if she wanted to do it.

“I felt a lot of shame in it and felt like it was me admitting that I couldn’t do it, and that was tough to swallow because we had no problem getting pregnant with Mary Kate,” she admitted. “But I think the heartache outweighed everything else we were feeling.”

Despite her feelings, Emma and Ryan gave IVF a try, and they began treatment in December 2022.

“I don’t know what came over us. I think just our faith and knowing we had a little help from above,” Emma explained. “There was definitely no guarantee that one or, let alone, both would stick.”

Soon after the procedure, the Kellys were pregnant.

“It was incredible,” Ryan expressed. Because the Kellys did a fresh transfer, the babies’ genders would be undecided. “We weren’t going to play the hand of God. We didn’t care. Whatever we get, if it’s two boys, two girls, a boy and a girl, it doesn’t matter. We want healthy babies.”

Since the birth of their baby boys, the Kellys have a new perspective on parenting.

“But I just have the perspective that we prayed for this so hard,” Emma said. “There are no really hard, truly hard days. Every day is the best day when I get to wake up and see and hold these boys. None of it was ever guaranteed, ever. It’s so worth it. Just for this. Just for these sweet snuggles.”

Emma announced the news of the boy’s birth on her Instagram and wrote, “Ford Patrick Kelly AKA Twin ‘A’ The sweetest, happiest Chonk on the planet. He’s our sea turtle.. just happy to be along for the ride. We’ve witnessed this little guy overcome the seemingly impossible over and over again. He is simply magical. Ford was the name we picked out for a son before we were even married. Patrick is Ryan’s middle name.”

She continued, “Duke Thomas Kelly. AKA Twin ‘B’ There is nothing #2 about this guy except for the order in which he came into this world. He is our feisty one and always has been. Tougher than nails and if you inconvenience him in the slightest, you’re going to hear about it. He is named after Ryan and I’s maternal grandpas.”