Celebrity Parents Get Real About Gender Disappointment: Kylie Kelce and More
From heaving sobs to 30-second reckonings, high-profile parents are going public with a taboo ache: gender disappointment. A former NFL wife, a Bachelor Nation favorite and a social media power couple are pulling back the curtain — and their candor is striking a nerve with parents nationwide.
More stars are talking about something a lot of parents quietly deal with: that gut-check moment when you find out your baby is not the gender you pictured. It is not pretty, it is not permanent, and it can come with some very real tears before it fades. Here is how a few well-known couples have opened up about it, in their own ways.
Ashley Iaconetti and Jared Haibon: From a tough first reveal to embracing two boys
On an August 2023 episode of The Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast, Ashley Iaconetti said she wrestled with heavy feelings when she learned their first child, Dawson, was a boy. The big sticking point for her was grieving the sister-sister bond she imagined for her kids. She says it hit hard, but not for long.
Fast-forward to February 2024: during an Amazon Live, the couple revealed baby No. 2 is also a boy. Ashley told fans she cared a lot less the second time around and, looking back, realized her strongest wave of disappointment came with Dawson. After that first reveal, she remembers being sad for a day or two, then moving on.
Jared’s stance was basically: two boys, bring on the chaos. He pictured nonstop energy, bumps, bruises, and maybe a few helmets for the grown-ups. Ashley admitted she needed a small moment to process that she will probably never have a daughter, but her priority now is simple: she just wants her sons to be close.
Kylie Kelce: The 30-minute sob that turned into gratitude
On the December 2024 premiere of her podcast Not Gonna Lie, Kylie Kelce did not sugarcoat it. She explained that she is not big on gender reveals because, in her words, there is usually some bias mixed in, whether you realize it or not. When she found out her second child was a girl, after convincing herself it was a boy, she melted down.
"I cried for a solid 30 minutes. Not like a few tears — a full heaving cry."
That tidal wave ended the moment she met her daughter Ellie. Kylie says she carries only the slightest bit of guilt now, because Ellie turned out to be the sweetest little person — and still is. She and Jason Kelce are parents to four girls: Wyatt, Ellie, Bennett and Finn. As for people who assume they tried for a fourth to get a boy, Kylie pushed back. They wanted healthy babies, period. And she even joked she knew they were going to have another girl.
Abby and Matt Howard: Grief, grace, and a third boy after loss
In April 2026 on their Unplanned Podcast, influencers Abby and Matt Howard shared they are expecting their third son — a rainbow baby after losing their daughter, Emerson. Abby described feeling a flash of gender disappointment that lasted maybe 30 seconds, tops. The harder truth was that no new baby could patch the specific hole that grief left behind.
"I didn’t have a girl-sized hole in my heart, I had an Emerson-sized hole in my heart."
She called this pregnancy a kind of sweet grace and said it underscores that this new little boy is not here to fill that gap — he is here to be himself. Matt got emotional too, admitting he deeply wanted a daughter and, more than anything, wanted Abby to have the experience of a mini version of herself. At the same time, he is genuinely thrilled for three boys. He grew up as one of three and says there is something uniquely fun about a pack of brothers.
The bottom line
These stories all land in the same place: you can grieve the version of parenthood you pictured and still be wildly in love with the child you get. The two things can coexist — sometimes in the same hour.