Hilary Duff is pregnant with her fourth child, adding 'one more to this crazy bunch'

Duff and Matthew Koma, a musician, have had two daughters together, Banks Violet, five, and Mae James, two. Photo: TNS

Former Disney Channel star Hilary Duff is pregnant with her fourth child.

The How I Met Your Father actor posted a photo of her family Christmas card on Instagram on Tuesday (Dec 12) morning, which she captioned "Surprise Surprise!"

"So much for silent nights," read the card along with a picture of Duff, her husband Matthew Koma and her three kids. A message on the other side of the Yuletide craft made the pregnancy announcement: "Buckle up Buttercups, we're adding one more to this crazy bunch."

Duff and Koma, a musician, have had two daughters together, Banks Violet, five, and Mae James, two. The 36-year-old actor also shares an 11-year-old son, Luca, with her ex-partner and retired hockey player Mike Comrie.

"baby #4 is loading..." Koma wrote in his own Instagram post Tuesday to announce his partner's pregnancy.

The What Dreams Are Made Of singer's celebration of incoming life came several days after she mourned the death of Lizzie McGuire producer Stan Rogow, who helped her land her big break as an actor on the beloved Disney Channel programme.

"Writing this right now is bringing back so many distant memories of what feels like a completely different lifetime..." Duff wrote Saturday (Dec 9) on Instagram. "One where I had absolutely no clue where I was heading or how I was getting there, but where I had that eagerness and blind optimism that accompanies youth and your first opportunities to step up.

"You heavily cherish the people who first believe and see something in you, and for me there was a very special person who fought for me to land a role that would change the entire course of my life... and I'm so very sad to hear of his passing today. Stan – thank you for thinking I had 'that special thing.'"

Duff, who starred in the series from from 2001 to 2004 and a big-screen adaptation in 2003, then thanked Rogow for her "Lizzie adventures" and for helping her achieve a dream she never thought was possible. She also sent condolences to Rogow's family.

Rogow, an Emmy-nominated television producer, writer and music manager, died Dec 7 at UCLA Medical Center in L.A. at the age of 75, Variety reported. He is survived by his sister, Marian Levine; his son, Jackson Rogow; and his grandson, Vega Rogow. – Los Angeles Times/Tribune News Service