‘RHOSLC”s Monica Garcia Is Pregnant, Expecting Baby No. 5 (Exclusive)

Monica Garcia is pregnant!

The former Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star, 41, is pregnant and expecting her fifth baby, a rep for Garcia confirms exclusively to PEOPLE. Garcia, who made waves in season 4 of the reality TV show, is already mom to daughters Bri, 19, Jaidyn, 14, West, 8, and Kendall, 7, who she shares with ex-husband Mike Fowler. This will be the first baby for Garcia and her boyfriend, Braxton Knight.

Garcia has also shared several exclusive photos with PEOPLE, baring her belly in a maternity shoot. The mom of four, whose makeup was done by Andy Truong, hair by Mariah Ergovich, and photos taken by Jesús Rodríguez, can be seen wearing a black blazer and no shirt, highlighting her pregnant belly, as well as posing alongside Knight, who sweetly kisses her stomach.

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Garcia tells PEOPLE that when she found out she was pregnant, she had a Disneyland trip planned with her partner and figured that’d be the perfect time to reveal her exciting news. “My best friend, Koa, helped me pull it all off,” she says.

“Koa had picked out the infant ears hat at the Mad Hatter and had ‘Aries Baby’ embroidered on them while I distracted Braxton with churros and getting my cotton candy. I told him while we were on Peter Pan, flying over NeverLand.”

So far, her pregnancy has been a little rough — Garcia notes that she’s been “so sick” and has been throwing up her entire pregnancy. She doesn’t know the sex of her baby yet and is planning on saving that special moment for delivery.

The couple also doesn’t have a name picked out yet. “We have no names!” Garcia shares. “We are really struggling in the name department. Send us all your name suggestions!”

Although she’s so excited for this next chapter, Garcia, who experienced a miscarriage just under a year ago, tells PEOPLE that it also feels like “such an eye opener” and says it’s been a “complete mind shift.”

“It was difficult coming off such a tumultuous whirlwind with RHOSLC and all the love and hate I received from all of that,” she candidly admits. “Old friends turned on me, I was iced out by the cast, I lost my job, my relationship with my mother has never recovered, my world was crumbling. Then I had an unexpected pregnancy and miscarriage at 40.”

“The entire time I was going through all of that, the world chose to spit on me and continue to kick me while I was down,” Garcia continues. “The accusations of me lying about a pregnancy and miscarriage that I received daily while dealing with such an unexpected loss was a pain that I will never forget. I was losing a baby while being shredded apart by some of the most awful comments I’ve ever had said to and about me.”

The expectant mom of four says that her experience with the show and on social media led her to keep this pregnancy mostly private. Garcia, who is due in April, says that she wanted to “protect” and keep her pregnancy safe for both herself and the baby.

“Being able to protect my peace was so important to me this pregnancy,” she shares. “I’m grateful for those that have stood beside me, to the amazing fans, and loved ones I do have in my life, but that miscarriage was my lowest point with being in the public eye and I wasn’t going to put myself through that again, for the sake of the pregnancy and the baby.”

“God has been there for me every single step of the way,” Garcia says. “I have been so blessed and been silent about all of it. I just hope someone reads this and it resonates with them on some level. Reminds them that no matter what people do to you, say about you, or try to take from you, they can NEVER take what God has for you.”