Cardi B revealed the challenges of being pregnant with her third child while dealing with her estranged husband’s infidelity, which ultimately led to their divorce
Cardi B Shares Painful Effects of Pregnancy With Baby No. 3
Cardi B has almost had enough of these pregnancy symptoms.
The “I Like It” rapper recently shared that she is expecting her third baby with estranged husband Offset and it turns out things have been rough during the pregnancy.
When one user asked on X if Cardi (real name Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar) had been bleaching her skin, the 31-year-old quickly shut down the rumor before it even started.
“Bleaching while pregnant?” she wrote on X Aug. 21. “Why must yall be so dumb ? Actually NO !”
In fact, Cardi, who announced her pregnancy on the same day she filed for divorce from Offset, firmly set the record straight.
“I’m pregnant I’m slightly anemic,” she continued, “this baby suckin all the energy off my body to the point I’m pale,eyes sunken ,veins green ASF,can’t tan under the sun cause I get hot super fast and dizzy ….PLEAE STOP THINKIN WITH YOUR A–HOLE!”
And fans were quick to come to Cardi’s defense, with one commenting, “They can’t even respect women while they’re pregnant. Gross af!”
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Another added, “I couldn’t keep anything down with my baby and it made me look super pale and swollen. Don’t stress yourself with this trolls. Praying for a safe and smooth delivery.”
Cardi—who is also mom to daughter Kulture Kiari Cephus, 6, and son Wave Set Cephus, 2, with Offset—has been very open about her pregnancy experience. And that’s included sharing insight into why she and the Migos alum (real name Kiari Kendrell Cephus) are ending their marriage.
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“With every ending comes a new beginning!” she wrote on Instagram Aug. 1. “I am so grateful to have shared this season with you, you have brought me more love, more life and most of all renewed my power! Reminded me that I can have it all!”
And as she gushed, adding another baby to the family proved to be an important turning point for the “Please Me” artist.
“You’ve reminded me that I never have to choose between life, love, and my passion!” she continued, “I love you so much and can not wait for you to witness what you helped me accomplish, what you pushed me to do! It’s so much easier taking life’s twists, turns and test laying down, but you, your brother and your sister have shown me why it’s worth it to push through!”
For a look back at Cardi B and Offset’s relationship, keep reading.
September 2017: Top-Secret I Do’s
On Sept. 20, 2017, the couple privately tied the knot at home, just a few months after their relationship first began. “We found someone to marry us, and she did, just the two of us and my cousin,” Cardi revealed to fans months later. “I said I do, with no dress, no makeup and no ring!”
October 2017: A Surprise Proposal
A month after their wedding ceremony, which was unbeknownst to fans at that point, Offset got down on one knee at a sold-out show and poppped the big question with an 8-carat sparkler.
April 2018: Baby on Board
Six months later, Cardi took to the SNL stage to announce she was expecting her first child with Offset.
June 2018: Bundle of Joy
The couple celebrated their little one on the way with a fairytale baby shower that summer.
“It was a special moment for Offset and Cardi, and you could tell there was a lot of love between them and in the room,” a source previously told E! News. “They are both very excited about the baby coming and are counting down the days.”
July 2018: Mom & Dad
Cardi and Offset’s daughter, Kulture Kiari Cephus, was born July 10, 2018, with her joining his kids Jordan, Kody and Kalea from previous relationships. And the “Bodak Yellow” artist said the Migos members chose the newborn’s name.
“My dude named the baby,” Cardi told Ellen DeGeneres at the time. “I really like the name. Imma let him say the name since he named the baby. It’s, like, almost tricky but when it comes out, it’s like, ‘Ahh!’”
October 2018: The Look of Love
It seemed like there was no limit to the pair’s love as they hit the red carpet at the 2018 American Music Awards.
December 2018: A Bump in the Road
The couple brought the heat to the Jingle Ball stage with a big smooch.
“Thank you husband. He’s so fine,” Cardi told the crowd. “That’s my baby daddy, yo.”
But just days later, Cardi announced they broke up after rumors of Offset’s infidelity spread across the internet.
“I guess we grew out of love, but we’re not together anymore,” she explained on social media. “I don’t know. It might take time to get a divorce and I’m gonna always have a lot of love for him because he is my daughter’s father.”
December 2018: Saying Sorry
Shortly after Cardi revealed their split, Offset took to Instagram with an emotional plea that he later featured on his Father of 4 debut studio album.
“We’re going through a lot of things right now, a lot of things in the media,” he said in the video. “I want to apologize to you, Cardi. I embarrassed you. I made you go crazy. I was partaking in activity that I shouldn’t have been partaking in, and I apologize. You know what I’m saying? For breaking your heart, for breaking our promise, for breaking God’s promise and being a selfish, messed-up husband.”
A day later, he crashed her headlining performance at the Rolling Loud Festival in Los Angeles, complete with a cake and 2,000 white and red roses from Venus ET Fleur worth $15,000, displaying the message, “Take Me Back Cardi.”
January 2019: Putting in the Work
While Cardi seemed less than pleased with Offset’s grand gesture, a month later she told the press they were “working things out.”
February 2019: Giving Things Another Go
During the 2019 Grammys red carpet, Cardi and Offset not-so-subtly confirmed they were back on with some serious PDA.
And Offset later explained how they were moving forward.
“You gotta go through steps and different things so that we can grow,” he said on The Breakfast Club. “Not on the TV though, real behind-the-scenes, getting to know each other, getting to know who you’re with and appreciate them all the way around. Because that one mistake made me appreciate her.”
April 2019: Finding Their Harmony
By that spring, the pair had put their romance on display with a steamy joint music video for “Clout” as well as a surprise performance together at Revolve Festival.
May 2019: Date Night
Cardi and Offset brought the heat to the red carpet at the 2019 Billboard Music Awards. From licking each other to him lifting his lady, they packed on the PDA.
June 2019: A Stylish Duo
The fashion-forward couple stuck a sultry pose at the 2019 BET Awards, and professed their love for each other in sweet social media tributes.
“I love you,” Cardi wrote on Instagram at the time alongside photos from the event, and Offset adding, “I love you more.”
July 2019: Party of 3
The happy family celebrated Kulture’s first birthday with some cake at the stroke of midnight. They later threw a huge, and we mean huge, party to mark the special occasion with their nearest and dearest.
December 2019: Forgiveness
Cardi and daughter Kulture appear on the cover of Vogue in December 2019, where the Grammy winner reflected on her husband’s infidelity.
“I believe in forgiveness,” she told the magazine. “I prayed on it. Me and my husband, we prayed on it. We had priests come to us. And we just came to an understanding like, bro, it’s really us against the world.”
“He has my back for everything, I have his back for everything,” Cardi continued, “so when you cheat, you’re betraying the person that has your back the most. Why would you do that? We have come to a clear understanding. For me, monogamy is the only way. I’ll beat your ass if you cheat on me.”
May 2020: Mommy’s Girl
The family celebrated Cardi’s second Mother’s Day, which Offset commemorated with a loving message.
“Happy Mother’s Day,” he wrote on Instagram at the time, “since I met you it’s been love thank you for my beautiful daughter she smart with attitude like you and talented like us both my kids and you help me become a better guy all around. Thank You WIFE !!!!”
September 2020: Calling It Quits
Last that fall, the “WAP” artist filed for divorce from her husband after three years of marriage. In the divorce filing, obtained by E! News, Cardi’s legal team stated the marriage was “irretrievably broken” and “there are no prospects for a reconciliation.”
November 2020: Rekindled Romance
Two months after going their separate ways, the couple revealed they were giving their love another shot. As Offset’s attorney told E! News at the time, “I can confirm that the divorce filed by Cardi B has been dismissed.”
June 2021: Baby No. 2
While performing with her husband and the rest of the Migos group during the 2021 BET Awards, Cardi announced she’s expecting her second child with Offset.
September 2021: He’s Here!
On Sept. 6, 2021, the parents announced their baby’s birth.
“We are so overjoyed to finally meet our son,” they shared in a joint statement. “He is already loved so much by family and friends and we can’t wait to introduce him to his other siblings.”
Seven months later, Cardi and Offset revealed the little one’s name: Wave Set Cephus.
November 2021: Reflecting on Their Journey
And the “Money” artist was excited about their new chapter.
“Of course we went through some challenges,” she told E! News in November 2021. “We had to get to know each other better. But I feel like I’ve never been happier. I really feel like [it’s] not even just marriage, it’s the family, the unity, the friendship that we have, the ‘I have your back, you have my back.’”
April 2022: Honest About Their Challenges
With nearly five years of marriage under their belt, Cardi looked back at the early days of their union.
“I feel like our first year, even though we were in love with each other, we had a lot of lust,” she told Essence in a 2022 cover story. “We didn’t really know each other like that, because he was doing four shows a week. I was doing four shows a week. We would see each other about three or four times a month.”
January 2023: Standing by Their Decision to Stick Together
The “Up” rapper also shed some light on why she called off their divorce back in 2020.
“The main thing that I wanted him to stop and everything, he stopped and he changed,” she explained on a January 2023 episode of The Jason Lee Show, “and it showed me that he wanted to change for me.”
As time went on, Cardi added, she and Offset were “getting better and better” and she soon learned they were expecting baby Wave. She then decided to give Offset another chance, noting, “You could just see when somebody’s trying.”
December 2023: Another Breakup
Cardi confirmed she and Offset called it quits again, sharing on Instagram Live that she’s “been single for a minute now.”