Social media influencer Emilie Kiser has detailed her family's 'terrible Christmas' following the drowning death of her young son earlier this year.
Kiser, a popular mommy blogger on TikTok, lost her three-year-old Trigg on May 18, six days after he was found unresponsive in the family's backyard pool in Arizona.
The influencer said she refused to 'force normalcy' this holiday season as she shared a candid post at grieving at a time of celebration.
Since returning online in September, the 26-year-old creator has shared only vague, guarded updates on her life and grief journey with her 5.1 million followers.
On Saturday, Kiser posted a 'get ready with me' video in holiday pajamas, chatting with fans and revealing why her family skipped Christmas at home for a road trip.
'I just didn't want to force a normal Christmas because it is not a normal Christmas,' Kiser shared.
'It was, quite frankly, a terrible Christmas for us - I saw that just to be real and honest,' she added.
On December 25, the grieving mother shared a quiet glimpse of her morning, packing her nine-month-old son Teddy's duffel bag before heading to California to spend the holiday with family.
Kiser said she refused to 'force normalcy' after her son's drowning earlier this year and described the holiday as a 'terrible Christmas.'
The clip drew more than five million views and a flood of comments, as viewers questioned her trip and asked how she coped with her first Christmas without her toddler.
Days later, she delivered the highly anticipated update, opening the five-minute video by thanking fans for the overwhelming amount of sweet messages and well wishes she received in her direct messages.
'Truly so grateful for my family this year, even though we were not home for Christmas this year. We just did not want to have a traditional Christmas without Trigg,' Kiser said.
'My family made sure to just make us still feel so special - make it special for Teddy,' she added.
She emphasized how grateful she was for her siblings, who assured her they'd make the holidays as comfortable as possible and go to any lengths to make the day easier for her family.
'We were able to just have very quality time together and that is really just all we wanted this year - making memories still, but not having it feel like a normal Christmas.'
Kiser described the trip as 'up in the air,' saying it depended on how everyone was feeling and what they wanted to do each day.
Many fans, however, were happy to see her subtly mention her husband, Trigg's father Brady Kiser, in videos again, after rumors suggested their relationship ended following their son's death.
The pair 'have been thoughtfully working on their relationship for several months,' an insider told US Weekly earlier this month.
'They have gone through the worst tragedy you could ever experience as parents and they are doing their best to come together as a family,' the source told the outlet.
'This holiday season is so important to bring a sense of normal for their family,' they added. 'And they're still keeping things private as they work to be the best parents they can be to Teddy.'
Brady allowed his son to go play in the backyard after eating lunch just before the tragedy unfolded, as reported by AZ Central. Emilie was reportedly out with friends at the time.
He saw his three-year-old son playing near the pool - something police records note was 'not uncommon' - and while the pool was usually covered for safety, this time it wasn't.
However, Brady was 'soon distracted' while caring for their newborn son and took his eyes off of Trigg for a mere three to five minutes.
When he turned his attention back to the little boy, he was met with a horrifying sight of Trigg floating lifeless in their backyard pool.
Brady immediately burst into action, jumping into the pool to retrieve their son before calling 911 to their home.
Many fans, however, were happy to see her subtly mention her husband, Trigg's father Brady Kiser, in videos again, after rumors suggested their relationship ended following their son's death.
Last month, Kiser issued a heartfelt plea to parents to install pool fences and has repeatedly expressed regret over the accident since her recent return to the internet.
Trigg was transported to Chandler Regional Medical Center, then transferred to Phoenix Children's Hospital, where he died on May 18 after remaining in critical condition.
Last month, Kiser issued a heartfelt plea to parents to install pool fences and has repeatedly expressed regret over the accident since her recent return to the internet.
'Please take every precaution possible around water with your children. Drowning is quick and preventable,' Kiser said.
'I know statistically Trigg's drowning won't be the last, and more have happened since,' she added. 'Drowning is the leading cause of death in children ages one to four in the US.'
Kiser advised parents to watch their youngsters at all times, saying 'No amount of supervision is too much or "helicopter parenting".'
She advised pool owners to install fences and even add a barrier over existing protection, such as nets or automatic covers.
She also recommended pool alarms, extra locks and automatic closers for doors that lead to the outside.
'Please sign your kids up for swim lessons... lessons as soon as the age of six months old,' she added.