Smiling Newborn Baby
A photo of a newborn baby beaming up at her father has captured hearts and gone viral on social media. New father Flávio Diego Vilela Dantas posted the photo of his daughter smiling at him on Instagram. (1, 2)
Dantas and his partner, Tarsila Rosa Cordeiro Batista, became parents to their daughter, Antonella, on August 11, 2019. The family lives in Brazil. (2)
After Antonella was born, hospital staff laid the sleeping baby girl on her mother’s chest. What happened next warmed her parents’ hearts. Dantas began talking to his daughter, and she opened her eyes and smiled up at him.
In an interview with Só Notícia Boa, a Brazilian news site, Batista said, “They put her on top of me sleeping and as soon as he spoke to her, Antonella opened her eyes and smiled!” (2)
View this post on Instagram
Quando vi minha família pela primeira vez ❤️🥰
A post shared by Antonella (@antonella.vilela) on Aug 13, 2019 at 5:17am PDT
Conversations in the Womb
The couple believes that Antonella had this reaction because while she was in the womb, Dantas made it a habit to talk to her daily. He told her that he loved her and announced when he was home from work. (1)
“He always told her that he loved her so much. Good morning when I went to work, arrived good afternoon, said I’d always be there, kept stroking my belly… And amazingly it always seems at the same time every day she started to move,” Batista told Só Notícia Boa. ”And as soon as Antonella was born Dad repeated the phrase he always said when he was in his belly: ‘Oooo daughter, Daddy’s here!’” (1)
A nurse caught the special moment on camera, and Dantas described his feelings about it in an Instagram post. “I can’t explain the feeling I felt at that moment. Every day I would talk to my daughter in her mother’s belly, I would always tell her that I loved her, that Daddy was there and that I was going to be the best father in the world! When she was born, look, how did she repay me? With that delicious smile.” (1, 2)
Healthy Newborn Baby Girl
Antonella was 6.9 pounds and 1 foot 7 inches at birth. She was born at Naval Marcílio Dias Hospital in Rio de Janeiro. Antonella’s birthday, August 11, also happens to be Father’s Day in Brazil. This seems perfect, considering her instant connection with her father. (2)
Her parents were thrilled with her birth. Dantas is in the navy. Before Antonella was born, Batista worked as an attendant and cook at a kiosk in Madureira, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro. (2)
Só Notícia Boa asked Dantas about how he felt when Antonella recognized his voice and smiled at him. He told them, “”I thought I knew what a feeling of true love was, until I looked at that most sincere smile in the world … it was [there] that I could be sure what love is.” (2)
On Instagram, he added, “A love that does not fit inside the chest!” (1)
Newborn baby Antonella is entering the world to so much love. She seems to feel the same way about her family, considering her big smile when she first saw them.