Entertainment

Jinger Duggar Is Pregnant With Her First Child With Jeremy Vuolo, & Fans Are Psyched

by Alana Romain

The Duggar family might already be super-sized, but in 2018, it's about to get a whole lot bigger. On Wednesday, People confirmed that Jinger Vuolo is pregnant with her first child, making her the third Duggar to have a baby on the way. But unlike her siblings, who announced pregnancies shortly after tying the knot, Jinger's baby announcement comes as a bit of a surprise — she and her husband, Jeremy Vuolo, celebrated their first wedding anniversary in November, and hadn't given any hints as to when they hoped to start a family.

Jinger teased the big news in an Instagram post Wednesday morning, in which she directed fans to the couple's official website, The Vuolos. In a post titled "Exciting News!" Jinger and Jeremy shared that they were expecting their first child together after 14 months of marriage, and wrote, "We are praising God for this beautiful gift and ask that you join us in praying for a safe and healthy pregnancy." In an accompanying video message for TLC, the Counting On stars spoke further about their baby-to-be, telling viewers they were "thrilled" about the pregnancy, and that they both had a feeling that the baby is a boy (though they'd be "happy either way").

It's definitely been a big year for Duggar updates: Jinger and Jeremy's pregnancy announcement comes only a couple of weeks after her brother, Joseph, announced that he and his wife, Kendra Duggar, were expecting their first child together, and just over four months since her sister, Joy-Anna, announced that she was expecting a baby with her husband, Austin Forsyth. In fact, in a post on the Duggar family Instagram account, Duggar parents Jim Bob and Michelle recapped that 2017 brought them "3 new grandbabies, 2 beautiful weddings, 1 new son-in-law, 1 new daughter-in-law" — and now, they're already on track to have three more grandchildren this year.

As far as Duggar pregnancies go though, Jinger and Jeremy were definitely unique in their decision to wait to get pregnant. So far, each of Jinger's married siblings have announced a pregnancy within months of their weddings: both Joe and Kendra and Joy and Austin shared their baby news three months after their weddings, while Jill Duggar and her husband, Derek Dillard, announced that they were expecting only two months after their wedding day, according to E! News. Prior to Jinger's pregnancy, Jessa Duggar and her husband, Ben Seewald, actually had been the Duggar couple who had waited the longest, with their pregnancy announcement coming five months after tying the knot (according to People, their son, Spurgeon Elliot, was actually due on their first wedding anniversary).

Of course, it's entirely possible that Jinger and Jeremy hadn't actually planned the timing of their pregnancy — Jim Bob and Michelle have opened up in the past about not believing in birth control, and Jinger hasn't commented either way. But in an interview with TLC shared only a few months after their wedding, the couple spoke about their plans for their first year of marriage, and it sounded as though they already had quite a bit on their plate.

Although Jeremy and Jinger got married in her home state of Arkansas, after their wedding Jinger actually moved to Laredo, Texas, where Jeremy — who had once been a professional soccer player — was working full-time as a pastor. Given the big move, coupled with the adjustment to newlywed life (particularly for a couple who kissed for the first time on their wedding day!), it's not entirely surprising that they may not have been in a big rush to have a baby.

When asked by TLC if they were hoping to have "any babies in the future," Jeremy said that while he and Jinger "love babies," they were "focused on getting settled into Texas and the ministry, and being together," and that they were hoping to learn Spanish in their first year together given the high population of Spanish-speakers in their city.

With the news that they're expecting their first child, it seems that Jinger and Jeremy are more than ready to look ahead to the next stage in their lives together, and it's something their fans can't wait to see. Unlike some of her siblings though, it's not as easy to speculate about whether Jinger plans to follow in her parents' footsteps and have lots of children (and just as importantly, whether she intends for them to all have names beginning with "J"). But what does seem clear, at least, is that she and Jeremy seem to be totally thrilled to be part of the latest Duggar baby boom — and it's likely to be just one of many more happy updates to come.

Check out Romper's new video series, Romper's Doula Diaries:

Watch full episodes of Romper's Doula Diaries on Facebook Watch.