Bristol Palin, the daughter of former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, finally settled her seven-year custody battle with her former high school sweetheart and ex-fiancé Levi Johnston, E! News reported. After Johnston posted (then deleted) a Facebook statement claiming he "won" custody of the former couple's 7-year-old son Tripp, Palin took to Instagram to explain their settlement.
The 25-year-old former "Dancing with the Stars" contestant posted a photo of herself holding her 2-month-old daughter Sailor Grace while Tripp held the family's dog. Both Palin and her son smiled widely at the camera and she shared her feelings on her new custody arrangement with Johnston.
"Every child deserves two loving parents, so I will continue to encourage that no matter what," Palin wrote on Instagram. "I have never, and will never, keep them from having a positive relationship with their fathers. I did not "lose" any custody case - my son has always spent most of his time with me and he will continue to do so, he is happy, healthy, and knows both of his parents love him."
Johnston, who shares two daughters (3-year-old Breeze Johnston and 13-month-old Indy Johnston) with his wife Sunny Oglesby, addressed the settlement in his now-deleted Facebook post.
"I'm so happy to have my son in my life, and to put all of this back in forth in the courts behind me. It might have taken me 7 years and cost me around $100,000 in lawyer fees, spread out among 3 different lawyers, as well as a lot of patience, but it was all worth it," he wrote on Facebook (via E! News). "I'm happy now to be successfully co-parenting."
Palin is also involved in another custody battle with her second ex-fiancé, Dakota Meyer, according to TMZ. Even though DNA testing proved that he's the father of little Sailor Grace, Palin is reportedly fighting back on his request for joint custody of their daughter.
See Palin's Instagram post below.