Gypsy Rose Blanchard said she knew Ken Urker was the one the day they met.
And even though they first laid eyes on each other in 2017—and a whole lot of life happened for Gypsy in the meantime—it turns out she was spot-on about their meant-to-be potential.
The 33-year-old, who reunited with Ken this past spring, revealed July 9 that she is pregnant with their first child together. She shared the happy news on Instagram with a maternity shoot featuring sonogram photos, a tiny sweater and various other adorable signs of a baby on board. The following month, Gypsy announced the couple is expecting a baby girl and that they're “over the moon” to start their family. In fact, she and Ken have already picked out a name for their daughter.
"Ken and I were so excited to have a beautiful celebration that our daughter Aurora Raina Urker can look back on and see how our community welcomed and embraced her with love," the mom-to-be told People while detailing her Nov. 16 baby shower. "She will be supported and given all the happiness a child should experience.”
Motherhood is a new chapter Gypsy wasn’t expecting—not only because she noted on YouTube the pregnancy was "not planned at all,” but also because she didn’t anticipate rekindling her romance with Ken in the first place.
"I didn't have it on my bingo card," she told E! News' Keltie Knight in May about getting back together with her ex-fiancé roughly five years after they first broke up. "And here we are."
The star of the Lifetime docuseries Gypsy Rose: Life After Lock Up said she and Ken stayed friends, even after she married teacher Ryan Anderson in June 2022. Gypsy shared in March that she and her husband, whom she wed while serving prison time for her role in her mother's 2015 murder, were separating.
But even when she and Ken were in contact more "sparingly here and there," she said, "we still remained friends. And it wasn't until I filed for divorce that I really realized that spark, that connection, is even better than I expected."
Gypsy continued, “I've matured, he's grown. So I think right now is the time in our lives, that it's the right time, right place—everything."
For some, however, the timing between the divorce filing and her pregnancy announcement had commenters questioning whether Ken really is the father. Of that, Gypsy expressed no doubt.
“This is absolutely 100 percent Ken’s baby,” she told Good Morning America in July. “There was never any question of paternity.”
Gypsy even revealed the results of a paternity test to prove it.
"Ken is going to be an incredible dad," she shared on Instagram in November, "and we are so excited to welcome our baby girl into the world."
And Gypsy is certain Ken will continue to be by her side as they navigate parenthood, just as he’s been there for her as she's gone through the complicated process of grieving for her mom, Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard.
Gypsy, who has spoken extensively about suffering years of physical and psychological abuse while living under her mother's roof, was released from prison in December after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and serving 85 percent of her 10-year sentence. Her former boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn was found guilty of first-degree murder for killing Dee Dee and sentenced to life in prison.
"When June 9 comes around every year, I find myself in a very depressive state," Gypsy said of the solemn anniversary. "It's a hard day for me. I listen to some of her favorite songs, and I allow my myself that time to grieve. And I do it privately because I don't want to be judged. So that's something that I do for myself."
But she also leans on family, she continued, including her boyfriend.
"Ken has done this with me a lot over the years, having a set of prayer for my mom," Gypsy said, "and just thinking about the good times, blocking out all of the negative and just honoring her memory in that way."
As Gypsy prepares to become a mom herself, with the baby due in January 2025, she can’t help but think about the relationship her mother could have had with her grandchild had things been different.
“For me, it is heartbreaking,” she shared on an October episode of The Viall Files. “Because I do from time to time think about what could’ve been, and it makes me sad. So, I kind of put that in the back of my mind.”
But she has her stepmom Kristy to fill that role.
“Kristy has become more of a mother to me than my own mother was,” she explained. “So Kristy is going to be grandma.”
Throughout her pregnancy, Gypsy has given fans glimpses into her road to motherhood by sharing her symptoms, cravings, ultrasounds and baby bump photos. And while she knows there are critics who question whether she’s ready to be a mom, she’s trying to tune out the noise and focus on what’s truly important.
“All that matters is making sure that I’m healthy, the baby’s healthy, my relationship with Ken is healthy and we are moving forward in a positive way,” Gypsy said in a July YouTube video. “It’s an amazing feeling when your whole world shifts, and suddenly it’s not about you. It’s not about anything other than the tiny little life that’s inside you that you are now in charge of protecting. That little tiny life is a baby—a little tiny human that’s yours and that you have to make sure that you protect, you love, you take care of and all of the things that I wished I could’ve had when I was little.”
As she later put it, “All the things that I wanted in a mother, I want to give to this baby.”
Before Gypsy and Ken start building a baby album, check out the couple's sweetest photos from their whirlwind rekindling:
"The One"
Gypsy Rose Blanchard told E! News she knew Ken Urker was the one "probably the day I met him back in 2017."
At the time she was serving a 10-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to second-degree murder for her role in the 2015 killing of her mom Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard.
Origin Story
The couple, who got engaged in 2018, even managed to create a festive atmosphere while Gypsy was incarcerated.
What She Said
They split up in 2019 but, as Gypsy noted, fate would come back to find them...
On the Outside
While Gypsy went on to tie the knot with teacher Ryan Anderson in 2022, she filed for divorce after less than two years of marriage. She and Ken reunited in the spring of 2024.
"We are together and in a wonderful place in our relationship," she told TMZ on April 30. "We know it is going to be a long road ahead but are excited for the future."
Sunnier Days Ahead
Cloudy skies couldn't put a damper on the rekindled pair's mood.
Cozying Up to Ken
Gypsy likes it when this Ken is all up in his feelings.
He Makes Her Laugh
Whatever he said had Gypsy beaming.
Cheese
Smiling for the camera.
Scenes From a Romance
Gypsy Rose shared a collage of some of her and Ken's most adorable moments a few weeks before revealing she's pregnant with their first child together.
She noted that their baby was scheduled to be due in January 2025.
It's a Girl
The two celebrate at their sex reveal party for their baby in August 2024.
Date Night
Before they become a family of three, Gypsy and Ken dined at a table for two during their September 2024 date night.
Romantic Getaway
The parents-to-be take a trip to California, including Marina Del Rey, that October.
Making Memories
And while Gypsy noted on Instagram the view of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge was "incredible," she added, "the company made it unforgettable."
Selfie Time
The duo sport their shades in this sunny snap.
This story was originally published Oct. 27, 2024 at 6:00 a.m. PST.