The 26-year-old dancer exclusively tells ET that she kept the secret to herself for about a week!
Lindsay Arnold couldn't be happier about her next chapter!
The 26-year-old Dancing With the Stars pro and her husband, Samuel Cusick, exclusively spoke with ET via Zoom on Monday, just days after announcing that they are expecting their first child together. Now, the two are spilling all the exciting details on everything from how they broke the news to family and friends, to whether they've learned the baby's gender.
Arnold revealed that she and Cusick had been trying for a baby for a while. She said she actually learned that she was pregnant while on tour with her fellow DWTS pros. Cusick, meanwhile, was on a trip and did not have cell reception.
"I found out I was pregnant on tour in a hotel room by myself. I had a day off, and I think I was in Kansas City. I just remember waking up that morning and being like, 'I think I am pregnant, I think I am.' So I went to CVS by myself, I got a test and took it," Arnold, who's due in mid-November, shared with ET's Lauren Zima. "Sam and I saw each other about a week after. I kind of debated if I would tell him over the phone, and I was like, 'No, I absolutely have to tell him in person.' So I kept the secret to myself for about a week and it was very hard, if you know me."
Despite having to keep it a secret for so long, Cusick was, indeed, the very first person Arnold broke the news to. He told ET that he definitely got a little emotional after learning he was going to be a dad.
"I am not a crier, but I cried," he admitted. "I was crying, I was so happy. That does not happen very often with me! I can't remember much besides crying and just being happy."
After that, the two began telling the rest of their family and friends, and documented some of their reactions in a sweet video shared to Arnold's Instagram.
"I was so excited and anxious to tell my parents and my sisters. Every time I watch the video [back] of me telling them, it's very emotional; it's just so special," Arnold exclaimed. "We weren't super anxious to post about it, and then all of a sudden, we were like, 'I can't wait to share this!' So, it was really cool when we finally did that, and it was cool to be like, 'Yep, I got a baby inside me.'"
The lovebirds have yet to find out the baby's gender, but told ET they "definitely" want to know as soon as possible whether it's a boy or girl.
"I don't think we can wait that long," Arnold confessed. "I don't know how people do that as a surprise!"
And as for whether they hope their little one will follow in Arnold's footsteps and become a dancer someday, the season 25 mirrorball champion said she just wants her child "to have something they love to do."
"That is so important to Sam and I. When he was younger, it was always some sort of sport he was busy with -- he was working towards something, he learned how to work hard. For me, it was dance," she explained. "So if my kids want to dance, I will love that with all of my heart! I will be like, 'I got you covered, I know what to do here.'"
"But I just want our kids, and this baby, to find something they love to do and that they are passionate about, that's going to be the driving factor," she added.
Due to her pregnancy, Arnold will obviously be sitting out the next season of DWTS, if the dance competition show still returns to ABC in the fall amid the coronavirus pandemic. Once her baby arrives, however, she hopes to put her dancing shoes back on and return to the ballroom!
"I will not be dancing this season, but I am hoping to be a part of the show in other ways that I can be," Arnold confirmed to ET. "I'll have our baby in November, which gives me about 10 months to have time with the little babe, and then get back into shape and get back into dancing to hopefully be back around for the next fall season."
"That's sort of the plan, and that's what I intend to do. I have every intention of coming back," she continued. "I mean, I love that show, I can't see me not wanting to be a part of it in some way for the rest of my life as long as they will have me."
To hear more from Arnold and Cusick's exclusive interview, tune into Entertainment Tonight on Tuesday (check your local listings here).
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