Jade Roper Tolbert experienced an unexpectedly emotional moment this holiday season after an AI-generated family Christmas portrait appeared to include an extra little boy, a detail she believes represents her late son, Beau.
The former “Bachelor in Paradise” star shared the experience on Instagram Stories, explaining that she had joined the popular Norman Rockwell–style AI trend to create a festive family portrait. The image was meant to feature Roper, her husband, Tanner Tolbert, and their three children. Instead, the finished portrait showed an additional child standing alongside the family.
“It touched my heart, because of course Beau would want to make the family photo,” Roper wrote, referring to the son she and Tolbert lost during a miscarriage in 2023, per People.
The unexpected detail immediately stood out to Roper, who has been open about her grief and healing journey since sharing news of the pregnancy loss more than a year ago. While the AI-generated image was unintentional, she said the moment felt deeply personal, especially during the holidays.
A Moment That Felt Too Meaningful to Ignore
Roper later shared that she asked the AI tool to correct the image, clarifying that there should only be two boys and one girl in the portrait. When the revised version removed the extra child, her reaction surprised even her.
“But now it just sort of feels empty,” she admitted.
The contrast between the two images highlighted how strongly the original portrait resonated with her. What began as a lighthearted holiday trend quickly became a moment of reflection and remembrance, one that Roper chose to share publicly with her followers.
Roper and Tolbert, who met on season 2 of “Bachelor in Paradise” and married in 2016, are parents to daughter Emerson, 8, and sons Brooks, 6, and Reed, 5. In 2023, the couple announced they were expecting their fourth child before later revealing they had experienced a miscarriage.
At the time, Roper shared a raw and emotional post describing the loss, explaining that she had experienced a missed miscarriage. She wrote about carrying her son with pride while navigating what she described as both devastating and transformative grief.
Continuing to Honor Beau’s Memory
Since then, Roper has continued to honor Beau in meaningful ways. Earlier this year, she marked the anniversary of her pregnancy loss with a quiet tribute, reflecting on how grief has evolved over time. “Grief is quieter now, but it’s still here, woven into who I am,” she wrote in a September post.
She added that she continues to remember “the baby I never got to hold, yet still hold in my heart,” a sentiment that echoed again in her reaction to the AI-generated portrait.
Roper has also shared additional details about Beau’s diagnosis, revealing that he had Down syndrome and may have had a congenital heart condition, information she said helped her better understand the loss while still honoring his place in their family’s story, per Us Weekly.
While the AI image was never meant to carry such weight, Roper’s response underscored how grief can surface in unexpected ways, especially during moments centered on family and tradition. For her, the extra child in the portrait was not a mistake but a reminder.
As she put it simply, “Of course Beau would want to make the family photo.”
