Raising a family is a challenging and exhausting task.
If you don't believe me, just look at what these two mischievous kids did with a bottle of baby powder while their mother was away at work!
Doing it alone isn't something any parent wishes for, but unfortunately, life doesn't always cooperate.
Nicole Bennett and her husband Deonta already had a wonderful son. Just two months before welcoming their second child into the world, Deonta passed away.
Heartbroken, Nicole could have cancelled the maternity photo shoot that had been Deonta's idea, but instead she used it as a beautiful way to honor his memory.
Together with photographer Sidney Conley, she found a way to illustrate the fact that Deonta will always be watching over their little family, even though his physical body is no longer on this Earth.
Scroll through the images below to see the amazing photos from Nicole's maternity shoot and learn more about how they came to be.
It was Deonta's idea to do a maternity shoot with Nicole and their 4-year-old son Landen before her March 25 due date.
Unfortunately, Deonta was taken from them unexpectedly in January.
Rather than cancel the shoot, their photographer, Sidney Conley, came up with an idea.
The maternity photo shoot with Nicole and her son proceeded as usual.
They chose a lovely outdoor park with winding paths and a little bridge over a pond.
Once the shoot was over, the photographer was able to take old photos of Deonta and digitally add him back into the new shots.
Both Nicole and Sidney were surprised at how much of an impact the photoshopping had.
"It brings me to tears, looking at the photos myself," said Conley.
Nicole hopes the unique pictures will remind her children of the wonderful man they lost.
“I wanted to do something special because he’s been there for my son since day one,” she told ABC News.
“It’s memories for my son of his father and for my daughter who will never meet her father, it’s memories for her as well.”
Nicole said the photos were “perfect,” reminding her of the man who made everyone laugh at their engagement shoot.
The touching photos have since been shared nearly 100,000 times on Conley’s Facebook page. You can see more of his work on Instagram.
Have you ever seen such unique maternity photos? Tell us in the comments.
Please SHARE to help spread the happy memory of this father who will be sorely missed.
