When Mindy Kaling walked the red carpet at the Met Gala last month, she was hiding a secret: she was three months postpartum with her third baby! The Office alum announced her secret pregnancy and childbirth today with the first photo of her new baby girl.
“In late February I gave birth to my daughter, Anne,” Kaling, who turned 45 today, wrote on Instagram. She is also mom to Katherine “Kit,” 6, and Spencer, 3. “She’s the best birthday present I could’ve ever imagined. When things are hard, whenever I veer towards cynicism, my three kids are such a great reminder of the pure joy in my life.”
“I’m so lucky I live in a place where I could do this by myself, on my own timeline,” she added. “Thanks for all the birthday wishes!”
The Velma actress also posted three photos with the announcement. The first one was taken in her backyard, where baby Anne was propped up on an infant pillow on a blanket in the grass while Kit laid next to her, and Spencer leaned over to give her a big kiss. It looks like such a peaceful scene!
In another, she showed off her baby bump in a floor-length cream gown with orange flowers and gold heels. In the last photo, she’s in the hospital, holding hands with Kit as Spencer looks on. We are totally impressed with her ability to keep the entire pregnancy and birth a secret for so long!
The comments were full of support. Kaling’s The Morning Show co-star Reese Witherspoon wrote, “Beautifully said ????????????”
Ali Wong left a single red heart emoji. John Legend said, “Congratulations!! ❤️❤️❤️” Andy Cohen commented, “Congratulations!!!!” Abbott Elementary’s Quinta Brunson wrote, “????????????” Octavia Spencer wrote, “Happy birthday role model queen of queening.”
Tan France wrote, “Oh my gosh, Mindy, I’m so happy for you!!” Her The Office co-star Angela Kinsey wrote, “Awww congratulations Mindy!!! And happy happy birthday! ❤️”
The Mindy Project star is a queen of keeping her pregnancies secret. Oprah Winfrey spilled the news about her first baby Katherine, and she told everyone that she welcomed a baby during quarantine on an interview on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. Since then, she has never revealed the paternity of her kids.
In a February interview with WSJ Magazine, she opened up about the joy and challenges of being a single mom. “It’s really rewarding, being a mom and spending time with these two people who look like me,” Kaling shared, per PEOPLE. “I love them, and they’re so funny. In terms of my career, I’m a single mom, I’m the breadwinner in the house.”
“So there’s a lot of panic that comes with that, the buck stops with me, I have to earn money for them,” she continued. “Having kids is everything — wanting to be a good role model and wanting to produce content that doesn’t embarrass them and makes them proud is another layer to my life and a complication that I welcome.”
Before you go, check out what these celebrities had to say about being raised by single moms.
