It's always nice to hear a father being so appreciative of all the physical and emotional sacrifices the mother of his child has made, and Ian Somerhalder went one step further by penning a heart-warming open letter to his wife Nikki Reed on social media.

Ian Somerhalder and Nikki Reed pictured together at the Environmental Media AwardsIan Somerhalder and Nikki Reed pictured together at the Environmental Media Awards

The 'Vampire Diaries' star welcomed his first child into the world - a daughter named Bodhi Soleil - almost exactly a month ago, and he still can't believe how lucky he is to have two incredible women in his life. He expressed his feelings on Instagram, alongside the cover of Fit Pregnancy on which his formerly pregnant wife posed smiling. 

'Just a quick note to you my beautiful wife. You are briefly napping on the other side of the room after being an amazing mom all night so you'll read this when you wake', he wrote. 'Seeing these images reminds me of those amazing 9 months that you sacrificed your whole being to grow our little one. The kindness, the beauty and organic nature of these photos makes me so very proud. You brought such fun and such power into our lives being pregnant but you literally brought the word sexy into pregnancy, we all see it.'

'Thank you for being my partner in this life', he continued. 'And thank you for inspiring not just me but all others who read, hear or see what your soul gives us.'

Nikki Reed previously posted the shot on her own Instagram feed, thanking the magazine for 'allowing [her] to feel so comfortable talking about some of the most intimate and exciting moments of [her] life'. 

More: Ian Somerhalder and Nikki Reed welcome their new baby daughter

The pair have been dating since 2014, when they got together only months after Nikki separated from her then husband Paul McDonald. They were engaged by 2015, and married in Malibu, California in April that year. It was in May this year that they announced that they were expecing their first child together.