A California father is honoring his late wifeโs memories by replicating their prenatal photoshoot with his 14-month-old daughter.
James Alvarez celebrated his daughter Adalynโs first birthday by asking the same photographer to capture them in a shoot reminiscent of some of the final photos of his late wife Yesenia Aguilar
According to the publication, Adalyn was ๐๐๐๐๐๐ed in an alleged ๐๐๐๐๐ driving ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ in August 2020, therefore Aguilar never met her. Despite the fact that Aguilar ๐๐๐๐, physicians were able to preserve Adalynโs life and deliver her through ๐ฒ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ section.
Fourteen months after that day, Alvarez returned to the park with his daughter Adalyn and photographer Grisel Leyva.
Discussing the โvery emotionalโ shoot with GMA, Alvarez said of his late wife, โShe was there with me.โ
โItโs been a tough journey but I did it with my head held high,โ Alvarez added in an Instagram post. โI try to be the best father I could be for my daughter. I want to make my wife proud.โ
The ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ husband described his daughter as a โa true definition of a miracleโ and told how he had kept many of his wifeโs clothes so that Adalyn can come to know her mother when she is older.
Alvarez has raised his daughter alone for the last year while remembering his late wife. Heโs kept a few of Aguilarโs stuff, such as her clothing and makeup, to present to Adalyn later.
โAdalyn, I know if your mommy was here, she would have been the happiest person alive,โ Alvarez wrote in an Instagram share of the photo shoot. โShe would be so excited to celebrate your birthday. Thatโs why, Iโm making sure I fulfill her wishes and wish the happiest birthday ever baby. Your mommy and daddy loves you.โ
The shoot โ something Ms Aguilar had been excited to have with her daughter โ featured tributes to the babyโs mother with her favourite flowers and her wedding veil.
Dressed in the same outfit he wore during the initial shoot, Alvarez posed with his daughter in the same locations around the same time of day as the same photographer captured their sweet moments together. As a nod to his late wife, Alvarez dressed Adalyn in pink โ the same color her mom wore for the maternity shoot.
โYou mean the world to me, Adalyn. I know your mommy is watching over you and proud of you. How I wish I could switch with your mommy so she can have the opportunity to fall in love with you as I have,โ he continued. โI didnโt set out to be a single father or widower. I set out to be the best father I could beโฆAnd it hasnโt changed because giving up is not an option.โ
Alvarez has become active with MOMS Orange County, a California-based charitable organization dedicated only to neonatal and prenatal health, since Aguilarโs ๐๐๐๐๐. He has been able to connect with other single fathers thanks to MOMS.
โ[Being a single father] can be a challenge, but life is full of challenges, and itโs a matter of how you face them,โ Alvarez told the outlet. โI would tell any single fathers that are in similar situations, itโs a blessing to be a parent, and even though it [can] be ๐๐๐๐๐ข, be blessed for the opportunity to be a father and to enjoy every single minute that you possibly can with your child because you have no idea what kind of bond you can build with your children.โ
Echoing those sentiments, Alvarez wrote in an Instagram post: โThrough my daughter, I was able to find the light at the end of the tunnel. She gave me strength to carry on, to fight for my life and she fought for hers.โ
