Thomas Rhett and his wife, Lauren Akins, have literally known each other since they were kids [1] and have a very sweet love story. When they decided they wanted kids, though, they struggled to conceive. They turned to adoption and then ended up pregnant [2], giving them their first two little girls in the span of a few months! Lauren had their third daughter just this year, rounding out the family of five and officially putting Thomas in a house full of ladies! He loves to dote on his little ones [3], though, showing off his sweet fam on Instagram — he's even written about his daughters in his music [4]! Ahead, check out the Akins family's cutest pictures, and get to know their daughters better.
Willa Gray Akins
Willa Gray Akins was born Nov. 1, 2015. Thomas Rhett and his wife, Lauren Akins, adopted her on adopted on May 11, 2017, and she is their oldest child. Willa was adopted from Uganda, where Lauren met her in 2016 while on a mission trip. Lauren told People that when she visited Uganda, she connected with Willa — who was going by the name Blessing — immediately [6]. "When I met Willa, her story was pretty intense. All orphans have heart-wrenching stories, but it felt like this specific baby was ours. I think that the Lord knew what he was doing when he did not let us get pregnant."
Thomas also told People that when he came to Uganda months later to meet her, after he and Lauren decided they wanted to adopt her, Willa wasn't too keen on him at first. "I reached for her and she was like, 'Who the crap are you with that beard?' But I was astonished at how quickly I bonded with her — and how immediately, she just felt like she was my child."
Willa is now happily part of the Akins family and stars in a number of adorable family photos that her parents share on social media.
Ada James Akins
Ada James Akins was born Aug. 12, 2017. She is Thomas Rhett and Lauren Akins's second oldest child. Thomas and Lauren found out they were pregnant while they were in the middle of adopting Willa, which was very much a surprise. Part of why they adopted Willa was because they were struggling to get pregnant [7].
In an interview with Southern Living, Lauren said Ada was named after her grandma [8] and James is a family name. And while Willa didn't exactly love being a big sister initially [9], she eventually warmed up to Ada, and now the two are best friends.
Lennon Love Akins
Lennon Love Akins was born Feb. 10, 2020. She is Thomas Rhett and Lauren Akins's youngest child. Lauren gave Thomas full naming rights to their third child, so he named her after a Beatle [10]. He told his label, Big Machine Records, "In the hospital one of her friends texted her. She was like, 'Hey, since it's Valentine's Day, maybe you should name her Lennon Love.' And it kind of started as a joke but kinda became cemented. That's what we kind of decided in the hospital."
Lennon is already settling in with her big sisters, and the family of five has spent a ton of time together lately while Thomas isn't touring [11]. In another interview with his label, he said, "To me, it's been kind of a blessing in disguise to be able to hang out with them and get to learn them a little bit better, because on the contrary, I would be on the road, but now I get to be at home and wake up with 'em, go to sleep with 'em, and I'm just finding new ways to have fun with 'em."
