Any person would find the idea of having quadruplets frightening.
But picture being a single parent and having to care for four infants at once.
When his wife passed away soon after giving birth, Carlos Morales was left with that situation.
Horribly, Morales’ reality includes this tragically unimaginable circumstance.
Morales managed to persevere in the face of such extreme adversity.
On January 15, 2015, babies Carlos Jr., Tracy, Erica, and Paisley were born.
Only eight hours later, their mother Erica Morales passed away from hypovolemic shock.
Hypovolemic shock is an emergency situation when extreme blood or fluid loss stops the heart from pumping enough blood to the body, according to MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia.
After his wife passed away, Morales had an outpouring of affection and support. Through GoFundMe, more than $486,000 was donated, and talk show host and comedian Steve Harvey gave him $10,000 from Sallie Mae for each child to put in a college savings account.
It was a day of conflicting feelings for Morales as the kids celebrated their first birthday a year after their birth.
It’s all extremely bittersweet, Morales cried and told PEOPLE. While I’m celebrating their birthday, they also lost their mother, and I lost my wife.
Despite being surrounded by relatives and friends at a nearby playground, Morales, a warehouse supervisor, made sure to give each of his particular children the same amount of time and attention.
At the time, Morales, who was 30 years old, remarked, “Erica would have liked this.” “The party would have been even greater. She was a big fan of this thing. She anticipated it with excitement.
Before the celebration began, his wife’s family and friends prepared a 30-minute memorial walk for her.
As he carried the kids’ strollers on the promenade, she told anecdotes about his wife to the kids so they might “know how beautiful she was.”
Thankfully, Morales is constantly showered with affection and encouragement. Despite acknowledging that he has little time to grieve, it has allowed him to maintain his spirits.
I’m seldom by myself, he claimed. “I can’t believe a year has passed. I only wish Erica had been present to watch them crawl and begin to walk. There will be a ton more firsts that she won’t witness.
Morales said that he and his kids are taking each day as it comes.
He moved in with his mother-in-law to help out, and she looks after the kids while he works throughout the day.
The more he thinks about life, the more he realizes how important it is to savor each second, especially while spending time with loved ones. Life is brief, therefore I cherish every time I spend with my children.
The minute Morales set eyes on his wife in a nightclub, he fell in love with her.
He laughs, “I didn’t speak any English, and she didn’t speak any Spanish.” But when I asked her to dance, she agreed.
She took away his phone number after he gave it to her, but they subsequently reconnected and got married in Las Vegas a year later.
“How do I remain resilient? He stated, “I have four main reasons. “We had been preparing to do this for years. She has made me a wonderful father. I must not fail Erica.
