Supermodel and Nebraska native Ashley Graham announced her pregnancy Wednesday in an Instagram post.
Supermodel Ashley Graham is adding a new title to her résumé: mom.
Graham, a Nebraska native, and husband Justin Ervin announced the pregnancy in an Instagram post on Wednesday.
The couple playfully adjusted the camera until Graham’s baby bump came into view.
“Surprise!” the couple said, putting their hands on her belly and giving each other a smooch.
Graham and Ervin announced the pregnancy on their ninth wedding anniversary.
“Today, we are feeling so blessed, grateful and excited to celebrate with our GROWING FAMILY!” Graham wrote in her post.
Ervin also announced the news on his Instagram page. He shared a photo of the couple holding a sonogram.
Graham gained national attention as the first plus-sized model to be featured on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 2016. She has since appeared on Time magazine’s list of 100 Most Influential People, on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list and on the cover of several other magazines.
In 2017, she released a book, “A New Model: What Confidence, Beauty, & Power Really Look Like.” In the book, Graham wrote about her successes and setbacks, and encouraged women to find self-confidence.
One birth, multiple babies: 8 stories of rare cases and surprised parents
The pregnancy was the first surprise for the Omaha couple with no plans to expand their family. The second was hearing three heartbeats. Amber Morgan gave birth to rare identical triplets on Aug. 26, 2015.
Melissa Kayser, left, holds Tierney, while Kayser's sister Lisa Auten, right, holds Ashlynn on Aug. 10, 2017.
Unable to maintain a pregnancy, Kayser used a gestational carrier. Auten offered to do the job for her sister and ended up carrying surprise twins.
Aaron Smith holds Aaliyah, left, and Cassadee; Candace Smith holds AJ and Skyler. The quadruplets were born Feb. 9, 2017, at Methodist Women's Hospital.
The four newborns were the first quadruplets born in the state in 2017, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Julie Kleymann gave birth to Omaha's Lakeside Hospital’s first set of triplets on May 26, 2015. Jeff, right, was the first to be born, followed by Lyla, middle, and then Knox.
Their parents, Julie and Drew Kleymann, met while working the overnight shift at the same hospital 2006, then married in 2010.
The Teten triplets, held by parents Derek and Lindsey on July 22, 2017. The trio was the second set of spontaneous identical triplets — they were conceived naturally — born at Methodist Women's Hospital. The first set was born in 2015.
"It's like winning the lottery twice," said Dr. Brendan Connealy, a maternal-fetal specialist at the Omaha hospital.
Quadruplet Connor Negus in the neonatal intensive care unit at Methodist Women's Hospital in Omaha on Jan. 11, 2013.
Dr. Todd Lovgren, the perinatologist who oversaw their care, said there have been fewer than 100 cases reported in the United States of quadruplets developing inside their mother the way these did.
Newborns Kayla, Leonidas, Thomas and Arya are held by their parents Ezinne and Andrew Jones of Omaha on June 11, 2015. The couple had the quadruplets on May 27, 2015.
The foursome was the first set of quadruplets born in Nebraska in 2015, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Arleth Garcia was born on July 25, 2013, weighing 2 pounds, 6 ounces. She was part of Nebraska's third-ever set of quintuplets. The set of five were born at Methodist Women's Hospital in Omaha to Bianca and Jose Garcia of Sioux City, Iowa.
kelsey.stewart@owh.com, 402-444-3100, twitter.com/kels2
Kelsey Stewart
Kelsey covers health and fitness for The World-Herald. Follow her on Twitter @kels2. Phone: 402-444-3100.
