Great American Family star and Hallmark alum Alexa PenaVega is keeping the memory of her late daughter alive two years after her tragic passing.
The former child star shared a heart-wrenching social media update on the anniversary of the infant’s death.
Alexa PenaVega Remembers Late Daughter
Alexa and husband Carlos PenaVega tragically lost their newborn daughter in April 2024.
“Two years ago today we lost our beautiful daughter Indy,” the proud mom captioned a photo of her three children holding a framed picture of Indy. “Her little life transformed ours and will always be a gift to us.”
She continued, “Never in a million years did we ever fathom having to walk through the death of our own child. But here we are today, navigating grief and joy like a little dance.”
In addition to Indy, the PenaVegas share sons Ocean, 10, and Kingston, 6, and daughter Rio, 4.
“Never did we know that out of deep pain a joy could spark within us. A miraculous joy that can only come from God. He used Indy’s life to plant a seed within us,” the “Spy Kids” actress continued. “He gave our family a fresh lens, a new purpose and a joy for what we do have here on earth. She will always be a part of everything we do and not a day will go by without remembering the heaven that awaits us with her in it.”
Alexa PenaVega Opens Up About Losing a Child
On April 15, 2024, PenaVega shared the heartbreaking news that baby Indy was “born at rest.”
“We can’t understand why things like this happen and we may never get those answers,” she explained. “Indy Rex PenaVega, you completely changed our world. You moved us to a new place. You gave us the community we have been longing for. We love you can’t wait to see how many other loves you change.”
The “Dancing With the Stars” season 21 alum later revealed that the delivery was similar to her previous births in that Indy “had a heartbeat two minutes up until delivery.”
“When I found out that they were struggling with the heartbeat, I don’t think that I could really grasp in that moment what was going on,” she said in January 2025, according to UsWeekly. “It really doesn’t make sense, the peace that we felt because it was so painful. It’s still painful. We felt so blessed through it.”
Alexa & Carlos PenaVega Are Publishing a Book About Their Loss: ‘Joy Isn’t Canceled’
The PenaVegas are sharing what they’ve learned through the painful process of mourning their daughter Indy in their new book, “Joy Isn’t Canceled: What Grief Taught Us About Pain, Peace, and Purpose,” due out in November 2026.
The book is “their vulnerable, deeply honest account of navigating unimaginable pain while discovering the faithful nearness of God. Moving between both of their perspectives, Carlos and Alexa share how worship carried them when words failed, how community showed up before they knew how to ask for help, how grief reshaped their marriage and family, and how vulnerability became the unexpected doorway to strength,” the book’s synopsis describes.
“We never could have imagined how much Indy’s life would change ours and touch so many others,” the couple told PEOPLE in an exclusive statement in April 2026. “She’s been such a gift to us in every way. She’s brought us closer as a couple, closer as a family, closer to our community — and closer to God, who’s shown us a kind of peace and purpose we didn’t know was possible.”
The couple co-authored another book, “What If Love Is the Point?: Living for Jesus in a Self-Consumed World,” in 2022.
