Bindi Irwin shares throwback photo of dad Steve ahead of Father’s Day

Bindi Irwin has wished her later father Steve a happy early Father’s Day by sharing a beautiful never-before-seen throwback of the pair. The post showed the late Aussie icon, dressed in his signature khaki green outfit, playing with a much younger looking Bindi at the beach.

“You’re always in my heart,” Bindi, 22, who recently announced her pregnancy with husband Chandler Powell, captioned the sweet post. Steve – commonly known as The Crocodile Hunter – was killed in 2006 in the now-infamous incident at Batt Reef, near Port Douglas, Queensland, when he was pierced through the heart by a stingray barb while filming for TV series Ocean’s Deadliest.

Many fans were quick to comment on the heartwarming post, with one writing: “He’s always watching over you guys.” Another added: “So sad he went too soon, R.I.P Steve.” While a third wrote: “Oh, that’s beautiful.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CEu3_rYhGmo/?igshid=1m4rgaypxwttu

It comes just a few days after the 22-year-old wildlife warrior opened up about the emotional moment she discovered she was going to be a mother and revealed how she broke the news to her American husband of six months, Chandler.

“Reflecting on when we found out that we are going to be parents,” Bindi wrote on Instagram on Wednesday. “Discovering that I was going to become a mother will forever be a moment where time stood still. I took a test and ran into the kitchen where Chandler was making us tea.

“He didn’t hear me come in so I speechlessly watched him pouring the water into my most loved hedgehog mug. This news would change the course of our future in the best way. I started crying tears of pure joy and told my sweetheart husband that my test was positive.

“We were beaming while our adorable puppy Piggy sat on our feet wondering what was going on. It reminded me of just how perceptive animals are. We sat together with tea talking about the future and how we were going to share such wonderful, life-changing news with the people that we love. In that short span of time the gorgeous baby I’m carrying became the most important part of our lives.”