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Influencer Melissa Mae Carlton has been pulling back the curtain on life with her four children online for years.
“Motherhood is an eternal calling. In all of us is potential and promise,” Carlton wrote via Instagram in May 2025. “The full culmination of those blessings in the family are not experienced yet on this earth. Even as parents today, we’re still waiting on the promise that comes from making and keeping covenants. We will all fall short here and lots of things may seem unfair. There is no family that isn’t touched with disappointment, tragedy, difficultly—but the Lord’s promise is for eternity.”
Melissa and her husband, Tom Carlton, are parents of four children. One of their oldest daughters, Abigail, unexpectedly died at age 9 in April 2024. Her younger sister, Molly, died the next year from an unknown health complication.
Keep scrolling to get to know Melissa’s family:
Tom Carlton
Melissa and Tom were childhood friends before their bond turned romantic.
“Tom and I have known each other all our lives and he was my first real crush,” Melissa wrote via Instagram in March 2024. “Our parents are good friends and we had a tradition where every New Year’s Day his family would come over for dinner. I remember nervously waiting and checking to see if the bright yellow camper van had pulled up into our drive yet. Then, once he got here I would ignore him.”
Melissa and Tom went on their first date when she was 16 years old, only a few months before Tom started his Mormon mission in Scotland. They reconnected after Tom’s return, shortly before getting married. They celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary in November 2025.
Lily Carlton
Melissa and Tom named their eldest daughter, Lily.
“From the moment she was born, we were instantly in love. I remember those early days and weeks, spending all day just staring at her,” the influencer wrote via Instagram in February 2025. “Every morning felt like Christmas morning — over and over again. “It’s funny how her character was so evident even as a baby—bubbly, hilarious, sassy, and dramatic.”
Abigail ‘Abi’ Carlton
According to Melissa, Lily and Abi were “inseparable” when the latter was born. Abi died in April 2024 when she was 9 years old.
“We are feeling the worst pain we have ever felt in our lives, but somehow profound peace at the same time,” the married couple captioned an Instagram obituary. “We feel so lifted up by our family, friends, church community and neighborhood. We are overwhelmed by all of the people who have shown up the last few days to give us hugs, sit, cry and laugh with us.”
Harry Carlton
Melissa and Tom’s son, Harry, was baptized in the Church of Latter-Day Saints in November 2025.
“He’s been counting down to that day for years — and it truly was everything he hoped for,” Melissa wrote via Instagram at the time. “I’m grateful for the missionaries who spent time with him, taught him, and set such a good example as he prepared for baptism. Their influence meant so much.”
Molly Carlton
Melissa and Tom’s youngest daughter, Molly, died on Christmas morning in December 2025.
“We still don’t have an official diagnosis,” Melissa wrote via Instagram several days later. “The doctors believe Molly had a genetic heart condition and suspect this may have been the case with Abi as well. … This type of condition, we’ve been told that even a minor illness could potentially trigger a sudden cardiac event.”
