new father was asked to wait outside while medical professionals attended his wife. When a doctor emerged an hour later, though, Carlos was told that Erica had passed away.
He reflected: “How could this have happened? She was fine, and then she wasn’t. She was alive and then she was just gone. I went from having the best day of my life to the next morning experiencing the worst day of my life. My four babies came into the world and then my wife died.”
Remembering an earlier conversation he had with his late wife, Carlos named the children Carlos Jr., Paisley, and Tracey. The third little girl he named “Erica”.
The grieving father was able to take two of his children home from the hospital on January 16, 2015. The other two were able to go home on March 11.
Despite the incredible sense of loss and the pain he felt at his love’s passing, Carlos knew he had to be there for his children. The father-of-four took baby-care sessions, learning how to bathe his young ones, feed them when they were hungry, manage their sleep schedules. He also learned CPR.
Eventually, Erica’s mom, Sondra Bridges, moved in with Carlos to help him care for her grandchildren.
“It’s funny how things turn out,” Sondra said. “Bittersweet, but at the same time, thanks to God, and the outpouring support of the public, it’s been phenomenal. And I’d like to say thank you to each and every one of you. All the support we’ve gotten from you, we appreciate it.”
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