Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol engaged to father of child after custody battle

Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol is engaged to her former partner Levi Johnston, the father of her child, despite an acrimonious break-up and custody battle. The 19-year-old daughter of the 2008 vice-presidential candidate is featured on the cover of US Weekly with Levi Johnston , holding their son, 18-month-old Tripp. Palin and Johnston tell the magazine they "reconnected" while working out a custody plan and became engaged two weeks ago. "I really thought we were over," Johnston said. "So when I went, I had no hope. I think we both just started talking — and then we took Tripp for a walk." Palin added: "When he left that night, we didn't hug or kiss, but I was thinking how different it was. He texted me: 'I miss you. I love you. I want to be with you again' ... I was in shock." Sarah Palin and her husband Todd said in a statement that they wanted what was best for their children, adding that Bristol believed in "redemption and forgiveness". Johnston recently acknowledged telling lies about the Palin family after he and Bristol broke up last year. The two sides have been locked in an increasingly acrimonious debate about access to Tripp, which ended in court. Johnston told the Guardian in an interview last year that comments he made to Vanity Fair and other outlets calling Sarah Palin a distant mother and a political hypocrite were partly made in retaliation. "If they had let me see my kid, I wouldn't have done any of that." At the time, Johnston said there had been times when he had been allowed to see Tripp about once a week, but there had also been times when he had had virtually no access. He said: "They started letting me see him and everything was fine. But everything got bad again. So I said screw them." He has since apologised to the Palins.