For Candace Cameron Bure, turning 50 has brought an entirely new role—one she had been looking forward to for years. The actress who grew up before millions of viewers as D.J. Tanner on Full House is officially a grandmother.
Her son, Lev Bure, and his wife, Elliott, welcomed their first child, Bond Leo Bure, on August 4, 2026. But Bond’s arrival came far earlier than anyone expected. He was born 10 weeks premature, weighing exactly 3 pounds, and was immediately transferred to the neonatal intensive care unit. People.com
A Tiny Baby and a Long Wait to Go Home
What should have been the beginning of quiet days at home with a newborn instead became weeks spent inside the hospital.
Elliott later revealed that Bond remained in the NICU for five weeks and five days. She described a period filled with tears, prayers and seemingly endless hours at the hospital while doctors and nurses cared for their premature son. Eventually, the news the family had been waiting for arrived: Bond was strong enough to go home. People.com
Candace later shared photographs from those weeks, including images of Lev beside his newborn son in the NICU and Elliott holding Bond while he was still receiving hospital care. She said that after six weeks of care, her grandson was thriving and finally home. Parade
Candace’s Two Words for Her New Grandson
The experience appears to have changed something profound for Candace. She admitted that before Bond arrived, she hadn’t understood quite how powerful the love for a grandchild could feel.
When celebrating his homecoming, she described Bond as a “miracle baby.” She also said her heart was overflowing and praised Lev and Elliott for the way they had cared for their son throughout his difficult beginning. People.com
And perhaps the simplest description of Bond’s new life is that he is deeply loved. Candace spoke of the enormous circle surrounding him—his parents, grandparents, aunt, uncles, extended family and friends—after so many people had quietly prayed for him during the weeks when his early arrival had not yet been publicly announced. Parade
From D.J. Tanner to Grandma
There is something particularly striking about this chapter for viewers who remember Candace as a child herself.
She was only a girl when audiences first met her as Donna Jo “D.J.” Tanner on Full House. Decades later, Candace and her husband, former professional hockey player Valeri Bure, are parents to three grown children: Natasha, Lev and Maksim. WESH
Now the family tree is growing again.
And Bond won’t be the only baby bringing a new generation into the family. Candace’s daughter Natasha Bure Perry is also expecting her first child with husband Bradley Steven Perry. Earlier in 2026, when Natasha announced her pregnancy, Candace said becoming a grandmother was something she had dreamed about and called watching her daughter enter motherhood one of life’s greatest gifts.
For now, though, Bond’s homecoming carries special meaning. His first weeks were spent surrounded by monitors, medical staff and anxious family members rather than in the nursery his parents had imagined.
At just 50, Candace has entered an entirely new season of family life—and after watching her tiny grandson fight his way through an unexpectedly early beginning, becoming “Grandma” seems to mean even more than she anticipated. People.com
She Had Been Waiting to Become a Grandma for Years
Months before Bond came home, Candace had already been talking about how much becoming a grandmother meant to her.
“I’ve been waiting for this for so long,” she told Swooon in August.
She explained that she was excited not only about having grandchildren but about seeing her own children become parents. After decades spent raising Natasha, Lev and Maksim, she was suddenly watching the next generation of the family begin. TV Insider
Candace even knew what kind of grandmother she wanted to be.
A fun one.
She talked about having an enormous amount of love she was waiting to pour into her grandchildren. At the time, however, she couldn’t have known that her first opportunity to do that would arrive weeks earlier than planned.
From D.J. Tanner to Mother of Three
The milestone becomes particularly poignant when looking back at how long Candace herself has lived in public.
She was still a child when she became D.J. Tanner on Full House. The sitcom premiered in 1987 and ran for eight seasons until 1995. Candace has said that her experience growing up on the show was overwhelmingly positive and helped convince her that she wanted to remain in entertainment. AARP
Not long after the original series ended, another major part of her life was beginning.
Candace married former professional hockey player Valeri Bure in 1996. Together they raised three children: Natasha, Lev and Maksim. AARP
There is an unusual full-circle quality to it now.
The actress viewers remember playing the oldest daughter in a famously crowded television household eventually created her own family—and that family is now expanding again.
Lev Grew Up Away From His Mother’s Most Famous Role
Lev, now 26, took a somewhat different path from his famous mother.
He studied biblical and theological studies and has worked with the family’s wine business. In January 2024, he married Elliott after Candace had confirmed their engagement the previous November. People.com
Two years later came their pregnancy announcement.
The timing made the news even more extraordinary for Candace because Lev wasn’t the only one preparing to become a parent.
Her eldest child, Natasha, had recently announced a pregnancy of her own.
Suddenly Candace wasn’t preparing for one grandchild.
She was preparing for two.
Another Baby Is Already on the Way
Natasha Bure Perry and her husband, actor Bradley Steven Perry, announced their pregnancy earlier in 2026.
Natasha found a memorable way to tell her parents.
She and Bradley arranged baby items—including a onesie, booties and a hat—and secretly filmed Candace’s reaction. When Candace walked in and realized what she was seeing, she initially appeared unable to believe it.
Her excitement was immediate.
Candace later said becoming a grandmother was something she had dreamed about and described watching Natasha enter motherhood as one of the greatest gifts she had received.
Only weeks afterward came Lev and Elliott’s announcement.
Natasha had an adorable reaction to discovering that the two babies would grow up at almost the same time: “Cutie cousins incoming.”
That means Bond is only the beginning of a remarkable transformation inside the Bure household.
Candace and Valeri spent decades raising three children. Now, almost simultaneously, two of those children are creating families of their own.
A Marriage That Has Lasted Three Decades
There is another generational element to the story.
Candace and Valeri have now been married for approximately 30 years. They met after Full House co-star Dave Coulier introduced them at a charity hockey game, and they married in June 1996. Wikipedia
They went from being young newlyweds to parents of three—and now grandparents.
For someone whose public identity has been intertwined with family since she was a child, it is perhaps fitting that one of the biggest developments in Candace’s life at 50 has nothing to do with another television role.
It’s happening at home.
The Meaning Behind “CandyGram”
Candace’s playful grandmother nickname now feels almost prophetic.
When Natasha announced her pregnancy, Candace started calling herself “CandyGram.” After learning that Lev and Elliott were expecting too, she upgraded the joke to “CandyGram x2.”
At that point, the nickname represented anticipation.
Now it represents an actual little boy.
Bond’s first weeks weren’t spent being passed around at large family gatherings or sleeping peacefully in the home his parents had prepared for him. They were spent in a hospital where every additional day represented another step toward becoming strong enough to leave.
That difference makes the photographs of him finally home particularly meaningful.
The milestone isn’t simply that Candace Cameron Bure became a grandmother at 50.
It’s that she became one under circumstances that forced the entire family to wait much longer than expected for the ordinary things new grandparents normally take for granted.
A Family Surrounded by Support
The announcement also brought responses from people connected to Candace’s long career.
According to Entertainment Weekly, congratulations came from members of her extended Full House family as news of Bond’s arrival became public. EW.com
That connection spans nearly four decades.
Candace was a child when she joined the Tanner family on television. She later returned as an adult for Fuller House, this time playing D.J. as a mother herself.
Now life has moved beyond even that storyline.
She is watching her son hold his own son.
Bond Leo’s First Chapter
The details surrounding Bond’s arrival make his story especially striking.
August 4, 2026.
Ten weeks premature.
Three pounds.
Five weeks and five days in the NICU.
Then, finally, home. People.com
Those numbers tell part of the story, but the family’s reaction tells the rest.
Lev and Elliott described their son as their miracle boy. Candace echoed that sentiment and made clear how proud she was of the new parents.
For a woman who spent months talking excitedly about becoming a grandmother, reality arrived in a much more emotional way than she could have anticipated.
And this chapter is only beginning.
Natasha’s baby will soon make Candace a grandmother again, giving Bond a cousin remarkably close to his own age. Family gatherings that once centered around Candace and Valeri’s three children are about to include an entirely new generation.
At 50, Candace Cameron Bure is experiencing one of those rare moments when life seems to fold back on itself.
The girl America watched grow up has watched her own children grow up.
The television daughter became a real-life mother.
And now the mother of three has become CandyGram—holding onto a tiny grandson whose difficult first weeks made his eventual homecoming feel all the more extraordinary.
