The published author is a stepmom to husband Jelly Roll's two children: Noah Buddy and Bailee Ann
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/Bunnie-Xo-Jelly-Roll-Bailee-Ann-66th-Grammy-Awards-021826-tout-8fa4f860e4a34e68acd28e4a86ae7a99.jpg "Jelly Roll standing between two companions at an event")
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NEED TO KNOW
- Bunnie Xo shares a deep connection with her stepdaughter
- While speaking with daytime talk show cohosts Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones on Today with Jenna and Sheinelle, the podcaster shared that she saw a younger version of herself when she initially met Bailee Ann
- Bunnie Xo went on to share that talking about her relationship with her stepdaughter is the only thing that gets her to “tear up or choke up” because wanting the best for the teen was the start of the published author becoming who she is today
Bunnie Xo shares a close connection with her stepdaughter.
While speaking with daytime talk show cohosts Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones on Today with Jenna and Sheinelle, the proud stepmom of two, 46, opened up about her deep connection with her stepdaughter Bailee Ann, 17, whom her husband Jelly Roll welcomed during a previous relationship. The podcaster shared that she saw a younger version of herself when she initially met her.
"When I met Bailee, I was looking at a younger version of me. Our lives are so parallel with the addict moms and just in and out of our lives," she said. "She is so independent and so headstrong and tenacious. When I saw her, I was like this is me and she deserves the chance I didn't get."
Bunnie went on to share that talking about her relationship with her stepdaughter is the only thing that gets her to "tear up or choke up" because wanting the best for the teen was the start of Bunnie becoming who she is today.
"Nothing on this book tour gets me to tear up or choke up besides talking about her because she really just was such a catalyst in my husband and I having to grow up and become adults," she said. "We were running from becoming adults for so long, and it was all because we wanted to give Bailee a chance."
The doting stepmom attributes the teen with helping her get over her biggest fear when it comes to welcoming children of her own.
"She's such a good kid, and I'm like, you know what, we did that. Like, I know that I didn't birth her, but that's my child. That's my kid. I will ride for her until forever," she said, reflecting on the 17-year-old's growth over the years.
"My biggest fear of having children of my own was inflicting trauma on them, unwanted trauma on them, especially because of what I went through as a child," Bunnie added. "Being able to raise Bailee, I looked at her, and I am just like, 'You know what, I might be able to do this with my own."
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The published author has been open about her in vitro fertilization (IVF) journey, sharing milestones and wins along the way. She opened up about her journey to motherhood in her memoir, Stripped Down: Unfiltered and Unapologetic, out now. In the book, she revealed that she and the country music star found a surrogate and have hopes to welcome twins.
"Now that we’re finally stable financially and somewhat emotionally after all the healing we’ve done over this decade together, we’re talking about the future—including growing our family,” she wrote. “J and I have a surrogate, the sweetest woman ever, and soon I’ll be starting my IVF stims.”
While Bunnie, real name Alisa DeFord, is excited about the prospect of welcoming a piece of herself and Jelly Roll, the model admitted she's a little nervous about the journey ahead. Bunnie opened up about how she's waited a long time to have kids and wants to ensure they have the "best life."
“I’ve waited this long to have kids with someone I knew would be a great father — and to be able to make sure they have the best life,” she wrote.