Shawn Johnson Welcomes Rainbow Baby, and ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Fans Are Obsessed

Former Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson East and husband Andrew East welcomed their first child together, announcing the news on Instagram Monday. The news from the former Dancing With The Stars contestant was met with celebration from her fans and famous friends on social media. Johnson East, 27, previously suffered a miscarriage in 2017 and announced she was expecting again in April.

“You are our everything. Welcome to the world baby girl,” Johnson East wrote on Instagram, along with a black and white photo of mother, father and baby. In just the first two hours since it was posted, the image has more than 580,000 likes and more than 24,100 comments.

“Congrats!!” Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez wrote.

“Yay!! Congratulations!!!!” Olympic ice skater Meryl Davis wrote.

“The FaceTime call made my heart melt.. can wait to meet her in person,” YouTuber Rebecca Zamolo wrote.

“OMG!!! Lots of love & prayers for that nugget!!! God love it!” one fan wrote.

“OMG AHH ITS A BABY GIRL,” another fan wrote.

“Ahhh congrats!!! Finally! Welcome sweet girl,” another fan chimed in.

Johnson East and East, who have been married since April 2016, announced on their YouTube page back in October 2017 that they suffered a miscarriage. In April 2019, about a year and a half later, they revealed on Instagram they were expecting. The pregnancy was not without some complications. In a July video, Johnson East revealed she had a two-vessel umbilical cord and her doctor said there were “red flags” that could lead to Down Syndrome or other anomalies.

“We are so incredibly excited to meet our baby when they come — he, she, we don’t know yet. We can’t wait to share our journey with you guys,” Johnson wrote in an Instagram Story post on an Instagram page they created for their daughter. “We have absolutely no clue what we’re doing so I’m sure we’re going to have a million questions for the world over the course of the next few months. Keep checking back for updates, guys. We have a lot to share.”

During an appearance on Hot Marriage. Cool Parents podcast, Johnson admitted she feared her days as an elite gymnast may have had a negative impact on her body.

“I had had testing done and blood work done and [doctors] said everything was good, which was a good reassurance,” the 27-year-old noted. “But again, at that time of miscarriage, I couldn’t help but think I did enough damage to my body at a young age that it was almost, like, payback.”

Johnson won five medals at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. She won Dancing With The Stars in 2009 and appeared on the 2012 all-star seasons. She wrote the 2012 memoir Winning Balance.

Photo credit: Paul Archuleta/Getty Images