In August, a report claimed that Richard Gere, 69, and his new bride, Spanish businesswoman and activist Alejandra Silva, 35, were expecting their first child together.
Now the couple have confirmed it themselves. "A very special moment just a few minutes ago… Getting blessings for our precious to come," Alejandra wrote on Instagram on Sept. 16 alongside a photo of herself, her actor husband and none other than the Dalai Lama, who can be seen blessing her growing baby bump.
"We couldn't announce it before telling HH Dalai Lama☺️," Alejandra added to her message, which she also shared in her native Spanish. According to Alejandra's post, the blessing took place in Rotterdam in The Netherlands.
Like Richard — a longtime follower of Buddhism and its spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama — Alejandra also practices the religion. "I was born Catholic but converted to Buddhism two years ago," she told Spain's ABC newspaper in 2015, People magazine reported. "I think it was already inside of me. I believe in reincarnation so that's why I think I was Buddhist before realizing it."
In early August, Spanish newspaper ABC reported that Alejandra was pregnant, though the couple did not confirm the news at the time. She and the "Pretty Woman" star both have children from previous relationships: Richard has an 18-year-old son, Homer, with second wife Carey Lowell, while Alejandra has a 5-year-old son, Alberto, from her first marriage to Govind Friedland, the son of mining magnate Robert Friedland.
Richard and Alejandra first had a civil wedding ceremony in her native Spain in April then celebrated with a second wedding for family and friends a few weeks later on May 5 at the actor's estate in Pound Ridge, New York.
The bride wore two wedding dresses by Israeli designer Yaniv Persy at her American ceremony and reception, People magazine reported. The couple welcomed several Tibetan monks to their celebration, People added.
Reports reveal that Alejandra previously told HELLO! magazine that she and Richard hoped to start a family together. She also gushed to HELLO!, "I was a little lost, without light, and knowing [Richard] gave meaning to my life. It was feeling that someone was reaching out and showing me my true path."