Bobby Bones Gets Honest About Fatherhood and His Own Upbringing Ahead of Welcoming First Child

Bobby Bones and his wife, Caitlin Estell, are preparing for the next big chapter in their lives: parenthood. Back in September the couple announced that they’re expecting their first child, and as the due date draws near, Bones is reflecting on how his own upbringing is shaping the way he feels about becoming a father.

During an appearance on Off the Vine with Kaitlyn Bristowe, the radio personality and podcast host explained that his mom gave birth to him when she was just 15 and later died in her 40s from drug addiction. On top of never getting to build a substantial relationship her, Bones says he also never knew his biological father.

He told Bristowe that his mom would come around every so often for the first few years of his life, but it was his grandmother that ultimately raised him. And it wasn’t until later in life that he learned his grandmother had actually adopted him at one point.

“I knew I spent a lot of time with my grandmother, but I found a social security card where my last name was changed on it,” he said of the moment he learned the truth. “My grandmother’s name was Hazel Hurt, which I have her name tattooed on my arm, but it said, ‘Bobby Hurt.’ And I thought, ‘who’s Bobby Hurt?’ And then it was that moment where she kind of had to admit that that was me. I was adopted for a long time by her.”

Having grown up without consistent parents, Bones realizes he doesn’t have a “model” to follow when it comes to being a parent himself, but that hasn’t left him with fear of taking on that role. In fact, regardless of the hardship and uncertainty that he knows is inevitable with parenthood, Bones can confidently say that he’s “not nervous.”

“I’m sure that it’ll be awesome and awful and challenging and amazing. Really, I have no expectation other than this is going to be a really wild experience. I didn’t have parents. I don’t know what it’s like to be a parent,” he admitted. “I don’t know what it’s like to have parents. That’s why I’m like, I don’t know what this is going to be…But I’m so happy that I get to do it with [my wife].”

He goes on to explain how a conversation with his therapist helped him put his feelings about becoming a father into perspective.

“I was in therapy last week and we were talking about my future baby and he’s like, ‘Hey, how you feeling? Are you nervous?’ And I said, ‘I think I don’t have something that I’m living up to or trying to be different than because I don’t have anything. I didn’t have parents that I want to be…’I’ll show them, I want to raise them completely different.’”

The couple announced the news of their first pregnancy on Instagram with a pair of heartfelt photos. One image showed Bobby Bones resting his hands on Caitlin’s baby bump, while the other showed the couple holding hands as they walk away from the camera.

The caption simply read, “👶🏼❤️.”

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A post shared by Bobby Bones (@mrbobbybones)

Bones and his wife have yet to share the gender of their baby, and it sounds like they don’t plan on revealing that detail prior to the birth. However, he confirmed that they do already know if it’s going to be a baby boy or a baby girl.

“I might have said earlier we didn’t know, but I say that to avoid the, ‘Yeah, we know, but we’re not telling people, but we’ve actually told like 10% of people and you didn’t make the cut conversation.’”

This July, the parents-to-be will celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary. They started dating in 2019 after being introduced to each other through a mutual friend. What started as a casual meeting quickly grew into a romance just a few weeks later. After spending time apart in a long-distance relationship, they settled down together in Nashville in 2020.

That year they got engaged and also exchanged vows during a private ceremony at their Middle Tennessee home in July 2021, according to a report from People at the time.

In a recent Instagram post shared by Bones in honor of his wife’s birthday, he predicted that 2026 is going to be “the most monumental ever.”

He wrote, “Happy Birthday to the funniest, smartest, prettiest person I know. And my favorite pregnant person ever. I love you @mrscaitlinestell.”

While they are keeping most of the details of their pregnancy journey private, it’s clear that Bobby and Caitlin are savoring every moment together.