TikTok influencer Taylor Frankie Paul announces she’s pregnant and expecting a rainbow baby with boyfriend

TikTok influencer Taylor Frankie Paul has announced she is pregnant. She shared the happy news by posting a video of her baby scan appointment to her TikTok page, and a series of photos which appear to be from a pregnancy photo shoot to her Instagram page.

The pregnancy reveal comes just under a year after the somewhat controversial star announced she and boyfriend Dakota Mortensen had lost a baby through an ectopic pregnancy, and also just weeks after she pleaded guilty to an aggravated assault charge after she allegedly threw a chair at Mortensen in an incident which took place earlier this year.

29-year-old Paul is already a mum to daughter Indy, aged six, and three-year-old son Ocean, who she shares with ex-husband Tate Paul. The child, which is due in 2024, will be Mortensen’s first. Paul and Mortensen, 30, have had an on/off relationship since they began dating in the summer of 2022, months after Paul’s marriage ended, allegedly because she broke the rules in a swinging agreement that they had made with their friends.

But, just what have Paul and Mortensen said about their baby and what is a rainbow baby? Here’s what you need to know.

How did Taylor Frankie Paul announce her pregnancy?

Paul took to her social media accounts to announce her pregnancy on Monday (18 September). On TikTok, she has posted video footage from a baby scan appointment alongside a montage of photos which appear to have been taken at a pregnancy photo shoot.

The photos show her and Mortensen in various positions standing in the middle of a field cradling her growing bump, which she showed off by wearing a cropped cardigan. The video is captioned ‘baby Mortensen coming 2024’. The video is also overlaid with the caption ‘our rainbow baby coming 2024’ when the baby scan was shown. One of the images shows the couple holding hands and smiling at each other as a rainbow appears in the sky behind them.

On her Instagram page, Paul posted the same series of photos, saying that she was “so excited” for the arrival of the baby.

The full caption reads: “One year later we’ve been blessed with our rainbow baby. It’s been a very emotional journey from last year till now and I can honestly say I’m so excited for this new chapter of life with Dakota, my children and this baby. Floods of emotions have come through along with a different kind of excitement and worry you feel after losing, however so far everything is healthy and on track and my heart is full.” 

Mortensen commented on the post to say he was “so happy for this chapter” with his girlfriend.

In her statement, Paul is making reference to the fact that she and Morteson were expecting a child together in late 2022. She revealed in November that year, however, that she had suffered an ectopic pregnancy. This is when a fertilised egg implants itself outside of the womb, usually in one of the fallopian tubes. It is not possible to continue a pregnancy in this way and it has to be stopped using medicine or an operation.

How did Dakota Mortensen announce his baby?

Mortensen also took to his Instagram page to announce the fact he is going to become a dad on Monday (18 September). He has posted the same series of images as Paul alongside the caption “There is one thing I have always felt inside of me that I have dreamed about becoming, and that’s a father. I never thought I would ever get to say those words in my life and I will do everything and anything to be the best partner and father to our little rainbow baby. Ps. I literally cannot contain my excitement. Hahaha.”

Over on TikTok, he took a different approach to Paul. He filmed himself calling Paul over to him, and then when she came over to him he focused the camera on her very small bump. He says “hang on, I just want to do one thing real quick” and then unfolds a piece of paper which is unveiled to be the baby scan photo. He then puts the scan next to Paul’s stomach and kisses her stomach also before kissing her on the lips. He then tells her “that was all I needed”.

The video has the caption “This has been the coolest experience ever for me so far. I love her.” and is also overlaid with another caption: “I’ve never been so excited in my life.”

What is a rainbow baby?

A rainbow baby is a baby born after miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy, termination for medical reasons, stillbirth or neonatal death.

The rainbow symbol has been used by members of the baby loss community for many years.

For some parents, the symbol of a rainbow over-simplifies their experience because the arrival of a rainbow baby doesn’t take away the grief they feel about their loss, according to he largest UK pregnancy and baby loss charity Tommy’s, but for many parents rainbows symbolises hope and light after a dark time.