Heavy Shawn Booth has welcomed a son, Locks Joseph Booth.
A former star from “The Bachelorette” has just become a parent for the first time. Shawn Booth was engaged to Kaitlyn Bristowe for three years after season 11 of “The Bachelorette aired in 2015. He has kept his personal life pretty private since then. However, during the July 17 episode of his podcast “In the Booth,” Booth revealed he was expecting his first child with a long-time friend. Now, the baby has arrived.
Here’s what you need to know:
Locks Joseph Booth Arrived on December 12
On December 17, “The Bachelorette” star shared the details on his Instagram page. “We’d like you to meet Locks Joseph Booth,” the new father wrote.
Booth continued, “HE was born on 12/12 @ 13:13 and is the greatest thing that’s ever happened to us.”
“Us” refers to Booth and Locks’ mom, Audrey “Dre” Joseph. When “The Bachelorette” star initially announced on his podcast he was going to become a father, he did not reveal he was having a child with Joseph.
“The mother is somebody who I’ve been close with for years. We’ve had a relationship and we’ve dated,” he explained. Booth continued, “This just isn’t some random girl I met at Honky Tonk Central.”
The baby “wasn’t something that was planned.” However, he noted, it “will be and is the most beautiful surprise I’ve ever had in my life.” Joseph joined Booth for a subsequent podcast episode and the two have been close throughout the pregnancy.
Booth’s Instagram post revealing the newborn’s name and gender included a handful of photos, and a short video, from the baby’s first few days with his parents.
Shawn Booth Is ‘In My Feels’ Over Becoming a Father
When Booth first teased the baby’s birth, he announced the newborn’s arrival in an Instagram Story. “Baby Booth arrived yesterday and is healthy & perfect. Mom is an absolute rockstar & did incredible!”
Booth added, “Everything went super smooth and we couldn’t be more grateful. Best feeling in the world.” The photo he shared showed only the newborn’s feet, leaving the name and gender a mystery for a bit longer.
On December 14, Booth shared a video on his Instagram page. “Baby B. has me in my feels, in need of coffee and a lot more storage on my phone for pictures and videos,” he joked.
The former “Bachelorette” winner thanked his followers for their messages and gave a big shout-out to the doctors and nurses. Quite a few fans thought he was signaling the baby was a girl by using the color pink for a “Thank you” in text at the end of the video.
Whether that was intentional or not on Booth’s part, he and Joseph welcomed a baby boy. They had previously shared they wanted to be surprised and did not know the baby’s gender ahead of time.
Bachelor Nation Adores the Baby, but Not Necessarily the Name
Booth’s Instagram post with the first full photos of the baby and the name reveal received plenty of love.
Fellow former “Bachelorette” star Jared Haibon commented, “Congratulations! He’s beautiful!”
Tia Booth added, “Soooo sweet!!!!”
Another former contestant from Bristowe’s season, Chris Strandburg, joked, “Manliest baby on earth.”
The big reveal generated quite a bit of buzz in “The Bachelor” subreddit too. The baby’s name was a major topic of discussion in the thread.
“I genuinely love this generation of names. You never know what you’re gonna get,” one Redditor commented.
“Adorable baby! Terrible name,” another declared.
“Locks Booth replaces Gates Gottschalk as my least favorite [Bachelor Nation] name. Cute baby, though,” someone else admitted. Gates Gottschalk is the first son of “Bachelor in Paradise” stars Raven Gates and Adam Gottschalk.
Another “Bachelor” fan countered, “I think Dutton Lane takes the cake for me,” referring to Lauren Bushnell Lane’s son Dutton with her husband, country singer Chris Lane.
A separate Redditor shared, “Locks Booth kinda sounds like a store or a law firm, but that is a very cute baby. Happy for Shawn and Dre!”