James Van Der Beek Has Welcomed His Fifth Child

James Van Der Beek and his wife Kimberly have welcomed their fifth child. The two welcomed a daughter named Gwendolyn, just in time for Father’s Day. James and Kimberly are also parents to a son named Joshua who is six, and daughters Olivia at age seven, Annabel Leah at four, and Emilia age two. The actor shared the news to Instagram with a sweet photo of the family and also used the moment to speak out about some other matters close to his heart.

Thrilled to announce we welcomed a brand new baby girl into the world Friday morning, just in time for #FathersDay ? These last few days, as I’ve enjoyed the privilege of making smoothies I know my older kids will like, making my wife red raspberry leaf tea to ease her uterine contractions, spending “boy time” with my son and getting my two year-old down for a nap in the way only I know how… I’ve been heart sick about something. As I write this, kids are being ripped from the arms of their parents. By our government. For the kid’s benefit? No – the opposite – as a purposeful display of cruelty to deter would-be illegal border crossers AND legal asylum seekers (it’s happening to both). And it wouldn’t be honest to wax poetic about my new-baby bliss without speaking up against this atrocity. If we allow our government to de-humanize fathers, and mothers, and children in the name of defending our borders… we’ve lost a huge part what makes those borders worth defending. And even if you don’t believe in karma, or in extending basic human decency to people who didn’t win the geographic birth lottery… even if you’re hard-liner enough to say, “Break the law, suffer the consequences,” shouldn’t the punishment at least fit the crime? And if you’re still cold enough to say, “Well, it’s effective,” consider this: This heinous practice was put into place by our own attorney general (who justified it with a cherry-picked Bible verse), and our president blamed rivals before tweeting his list of legislative demands to be met before he stops it. Regardless of how you feel about immigration, or a wall, or this president… if we say we’re okay with our government using human rights violations as a deterrent or as a bargaining chip… what happens when we find ourselves on the wrong side of the agenda? Either in this administration or the next? This should not be a political issue – it’s a human one. A crime against humanity is a crime against us all. More info in link in my bio. Oh, and @vanderkimberly – you’re a f*cking earth goddess rock star and I’m as in awe of you as I am in love with you. And our new baby’s name is Gwendolyn ❤️ #HappyFathersDay everybody.

A post shared by James Van Der Beek (@vanderjames) on Jun 17, 2018 at 12:49pm PDT

In addition to sharing his gratitude about being a father again, Van Der Beek expressed how upset he is that some people don’t experience the freedom that he has.

“As I write this, kids are being ripped from the arms of their parents. By our government. For the kid’s benefit? No – the opposite – as a purposeful display of cruelty to deter would-be illegal border crossers AND legal asylum seekers (it’s happening to both). And it wouldn’t be honest to wax poetic about my new-baby bliss without speaking up against this atrocity.”

In the statement, James Van Der Beek was responding to a report about the number of families who have separated attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border.

And… just like that, the moments of chaos are balanced out. @vanderkimberly

A post shared by James Van Der Beek (@vanderjames) on Jun 9, 2018 at 10:24pm PDT

The Dawson’s Creek Star had announced his wife’s fifth pregnancy in February and seemed fully aware that five was a lot of children to have around.

“Thrilled beyond belief to announce that we are once again adding to our family. And I say ‘beyond belief’ because some people are probably wondering if we’re out of our minds. Which we might very well be…but I couldn’t be more excited. Or grateful. Or in awe of @vanderkimberly.”

Tough crowd ?

A post shared by James Van Der Beek (@vanderjames) on Jun 13, 2018 at 9:31am PDT

Van Der Beek was previously married to actress Heather McComb but separated in 2009. He reportedly met Kimberly at a Kabbalah Center near Dizengoff Plaza in Tel Aviv, Israel, which is where they officially tied the knot.