Lauren Alaina Returns to Social Media After Ending Engagement

Lauren Alaina has returned to social media following the end of her engagement to Alex Hopkins. The American Idol alum, who started the year by announcing she was taking a social media hiatus, shared photos of her time in Mexico, where she performed for Luke Bryan's annual Crash My Playa event.

"MAYA-hee MAYA-who MAYA-ho MAYA-haha," Alaina quipped. "Just living Maya life. Ayyyye #RivieraMaya #CrashMyPlaya"

Later, Alaina also shared a picture of the stage, where she appeared to be singing her heart out.

"Y'all can Crash My Playa anytime," Alaina wrote on Instagram. "Thank you @lukebryan for having us!"

The 24-year-old kicked off 2019 by announcing she was stepping away from all social media platforms, while she did some soul searching.

"This Lauren didn't care if she wore boy clothes," Alaina shared, along with a picture of herself as a child. "She preferred it actually. She didn't know the future. It's ups and downs. The happiness and pain it held. She didn't know about heartbreak or loss. She didn't know how cruel people can be or how much words can hurt, but she didn't care what people thought of her or her boy clothes. She was happy and sure of herself. She knew she wanted to write songs and sing them. She loved fiercely and boldly. And most importantly, she knew how to smile through a mom bob.

"I want to live everyday to be more like her," she added. "I'm looking behind every rock and corner for her this year, and I'm going to find her. I'm taking a little break from social media. I'll be back soon. Probably not in a boy's collared shirt, but I'll be back more like her. Much love to all of you. Thank you for your continued support."

A few weeks later, Alaina announced that she and Hopkins had ended their engagement.

"Over the last several years, you have been so supportive of us through all of our ups and downs, including personal struggles with health and family, and we couldn't be more grateful," Alaina wrote. "You share your lives with us, and we always want to be open with you in return. We want to let you know that we have decided to call off our engagement. While we still have love for each other, we've grown into very different people over the last six years. We are now in a place where we are each looking forward to starting our own fresh, new chapters of our lives.

"We both love and respect each other and hope you all will do the same," she continued. "This has not been an easy decision, but we both feel it is the right decision. Thank you always for your love and support."

Alaina will kick off her run as the opener on Blake Shelton's Friends & Heroes Tour on Feb. 14. Find dates at LaurenAlaina.com.

Photo Credit: Getty images / David Becker