Beyonce, Jessica Simpson and the Most Anticipated Celebrity Babies of 2012 [PHOTOS]

By Peggy Truong | January 03 2012 12:43 PM

Photo: REUTERS

Beyonce

Since the announcement of her pregnancy at the MTV VMAs in August 2011, Beyoncé has been on everybody’s watch. After dining at Brooklyn’s Buttermilk Channel on New Year’s Eve, Beyoncé and Jay-Z welcomed 2012 with sister Solange, who wrote on Twitter, “Shout out to my sister for being THE cutest pregnant woman ever!” Beyoncé, who is reportedly having a girl, is due any day now.

Photo: Twitter/ jessicasimpson

Jessica Simpson

After months of speculation, Jessica Simpson confirmed her baby news on Halloween 2011 by dressing up as a mummy. “It’s True! I am going to be a mummy!” she posted on her Web site, along with a photo of her baby belly. This will be the first child for Simpson, 31, and her fiancé, former NFL star Eric Johnson, 32. While all eyes will be on the baby, Simpson herself will attract plenty of attention when she begins her post-baby weight loss program. The singer reportedly inked a $3 million deal with Weight Watchers to shed the pounds, just in time for her wedding to Johnson. Simpson is due in the spring.

Photo: Twitter

Hilary Duff

You know you’re getting old when the girl who played Lizzie McGuire is suddenly married and with child. Hilary Duff, 24, and her hockey player husband, Mike Comrie, 31, are expecting their first child together, after 16 months of marriage. The former Disney star recently revealed on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” that she is having a boy. “It’s kind of like a little alien has taken over your body. You just don’t quite feel normal. But it’s cool, it’s been good,” she told DeGeneres. Duff is due in early 2012.

Photo: REUTERS

Jennifer Garner

Jennifer Garner has been hailed by many in the industry as one of the more successful supermoms of Hollywood. The 39-year-old and husband Ben Affleck are expecting their third child together, expanding their already adorable clan that includes Violet, 6, and Seraphina, 3. “I wish I was one of those cute pregnant girls who wear skinny jeans throughout their pregnancies . . . but I just gain weight,” Garner recently told In Style. Garner is due in early 2012.

Photo: REUTERS

Alyson Hannigan

Alyson Hannigan will have plenty to celebrate in 2012. The 37-year-old actress reprises her role in “American Reunion,” which opens in theaters in April. Don’t be surprised if Hannigan bails on press junkets and promos for the film -- her second child with husband Alex Denisof is due around the same time. How fitting for Hannigan, whose “How I Met Your Mother” character, Lily, is also expecting on the sitcom. Hannigan is due in the spring.

Photo: REUTERS

Susan Levin (Robert Downey Jr.’s wife)

Robert Downey Jr. ended 2011 with plenty of good news, thanks to the release of “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows” and the announcement that his wife Susan is pregnant with their first child. “I am not permitted to discuss it. I can’t say a word. We’re having a boy!” Downey, 46, revealed on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” in December. The new baby will join big brother Indio, 18, whose mother is Downey’s first wife Deborah Falconer. Susan is due in February.

Photo: REUTERS

Maggie Gyllenhaal

Jake Gyllenhaal will be an uncle again! Big sister Maggie, 34, recently announced that she is expecting her second child with husband, Peter Sarsgaard, 40. The couple, who married in 2009, welcomed their first child, Ramona, in October 2006. Gyllenhaal is due in late spring.

Photo: REUTERS

Kourtney Kardashian

In November, Kourtney Kardashian, 32, announced that she was expecting her second child with her partner of four years, Scott Disick. “Now I’m nine weeks along . . . you’re supposed to wait 12 weeks to tell people, but I feel confident,” Kardashian told Us Weekly at the time. Baby Kardashian will join big brother Mason, who turned 2 years old on Dec. 14. Kourtney is due in early summer.

Photo: REUTERS

Keri Russell

Also joining the second baby club is “Felicity” star Keri Russell. The 35-year-old actress, who is rarely photographed in public, and her husband of 4 years, Shane Deary, are expecting their second child together. The two already have a 4-year-old son, River. Russell is due any day now.

Photo: REUTERS

Emma Heming (Bruce Willis’ wife)

Bruce Willis is going to be a dad again. The 56-year-old actor’s children with ex-wife Demi Moore, Rumer, Scout, and Tallulah, will welcome a new baby sister or brother in 2012. In October, Willis announced that he and his wife of nearly three years, Emma Heming, were expecting the couple’s first child together. Heming, 35, is due in early 2012.

Photo: REUTERS

Roselyn Sanchez

The 38-year-old former “Without A Trace” star is expecting her first child with husband Eric Winter. “I have great news! Eric and I are expecting our first baby! We feel so blessed and excited . . . thank you for all your well wishes and prayers. They mean the world to us,” Sanchez wrote on her official Facebook page in August. Sanchez is due in the spring.

Photo: midwestsportsfans.com

Candice Crawford (Tony Romo’s wife)

Just like his ex, Tony Romo has clearly moved on from his Jessica Simpson days. The 31-year-old Dallas Cowboys quarterback not only married Chace Crawford’s sister, Candice in May 2011; the couple announced in October that they are expecting their first child together. Crawford is due in the spring.

Beyonce may still be pregnant, but her baby is already part of an elite group of the New Year.

Tiana May (as many have called the baby girl for now) is one of the most anticipated celebrity babies of 2012, joining the unborn children of Jessica Simpson, Hilary Duff, Jennifer Garner and others.

Beyonce and Jay-Z's first child is so popular, that a fake Twitter account, BeyJayFetus, has more than 2,700 followers.

On Dec. 27, when rumors that Beyonce had checked into a New York hospital to give birth, the Twitter account went along for the ride, writing Let's get ready to RUMBLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEE!!!

The 30-year-old shot down the rumors on New Year's Eve, when she showed up to a Brooklyn restaurant, still pregnant. Beyonce and Jay-Z celebrated the end of the year by munching on fried chicken and oysters, according to People.

As the music world and gossipmongers patiently wait for the arrival of Beyonce's baby, here are some of the most anticipated celebrity babies of 2012 (in no particular order).

Happy 2012!