Emily Maynard Johnson is celebrating her first Christmas as a mom of six!
Her newest addition, 3-month-old Jones West, joined siblings Nola Belle, 2, Gatlin, 5, Gibson, 6, and Jennings, 7, for a family trip to Dollywood to celebrate. She is also mom to 17-year-old daughter Ricki.
In a new Instagram post, the former Bachelorette, 36, shared photos with her kids and husband Tyler Johnson at Dolly Parton's festively decorated amusement park. "Number one on my bucket list: take my kids to @dollywood ✔️✔️ ," she wrote in the caption.
Maynard Johnson thanked her husband of eight years, whom she posed alongside wearing matching "Holly Dolly Christmas" sweatshirts, for the trip: "Thank you @mtylerjohnson for making all my hillbilly girl dreams come true ❤️."
In November, Maynard Johnson opened up about feeling "grateful" after welcoming her baby boy.
Shortly after the delivery, Maynard Johnson learned that her son was born with Down syndrome as well as a rare congenital colon abnormality that required surgery and a monthlong stay in the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
"I was in shock," recalled Maynard Johnson of being informed of the Down syndrome diagnosis, which was confirmed by a blood test later on. (Maynard Johnson did not opt for genetic testing during her pregnancy.) "It was not on my radar at all. And I refused to believe it. I just wanted to hold him and for everything to be OK."
Absorbing the fact that her son needed to stay in the NICU and wouldn't be home for weeks was "devastating," said Maynard Johnson. "I was just grieving all of it and that the experience was so different from what I had expected. Waking up the next morning hearing all the babies crying down the hallway while I was in the room alone, it hurt so much."
Maynard Johnson said things got better once she was able to bring him home and get to spend time with him, saying Jones "just folded into all the other craziness."
"He's awesome. He's sleeping, he's just the easiest baby," she shared. "He's so chill. He puts up with all my other kids."
"I'm still learning about Down syndrome, but I'm trying to also just experience Jones as Jones and not as different than any of the other kids," Maynard Johnson said. "I have no expectations. He's perfect and everything is going to be great."
