Former Bachelorette star Emily Maynard Johnson is over the moon about her new baby boy Jones West, gushing, “He’s perfect” and “Obsessed with him!”
The former contestant on Season 15 of The Bachelor — she got engaged to Brad Womack in the finale — recently shared some adorable photos of her tiny son on her Instagram Story, per People.
Little Jones joined his five siblings with Emily‘s husband Tyler Johnson: Ricki, 17, Jennings, 7, Gibson, 6, Gatlin, 5 and Nola Belle, 2. The baby was born August 31st, but his birth wasn’t made public until November 2nd, when Emily and Tyler announced their new arrival via E! News, also sharing that he’d been born with Down syndrome.
A few weeks after the announcement, Emily opened up about being “shocked” when she learned her son’s diagnosis.
Even though she had undergone anatomy scans to “check the heart and brain and two arms, two legs,” her doctor had never mentioned having genetic testing done during her pregnancy.
I’m really surprised it was never brought up, since at 36 years old, Emily would have been considered an “older” mom. Her doctor should have at least discussed it with her. Even if she would never consider the possibility of termination, being informed about any issues or problems her baby might have would have helped her and her husband prepare themselves. It would at least give them time to learn and educate themselves before the baby’s birth.
“It was not on my radar at all,” Emily admitted. “And I refused to believe it. I just wanted to hold him, and for everything to be okay.” Totally understandable, which is why her doctor should have prepared her.
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Due to complications of his birth, Jones had to stay in the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for at least a month. During that time, the reality star confessed to “grieving all of it,” because “the experience was so different from what I had expected.”
But once little Jones was able to come home and meet the rest of his family, Emily says he “just folded into all the other craziness.”
“He’s awesome. He’s sleeping, he’s just the easiest baby,” Emily told People. “He’s so chill. He puts up with all my other kids.”
“I’m still learning about Down syndrome,” Emily continued, “but I’m trying to also just experience Jones as Jones and not as different than any of the other kids. I have no expectations. He’s perfect and everything is going to be great.”
I think she’s on the right track. As Emily declared when announcing little Jones’s birth, “He’s absolutely the cherry on top!”
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[Photo by Raymond Hall/GC Images]