After seven years of dating and nearly one year of engagement, Derek Hough and fiancée Hayley Erbert are more than ready to walk down the aisle and finally tie the knot.
The couple have been together since 2015, having first met when she was a troupe dancer on Dancing with the Stars after performing on his and sister Julianne Hough's Move Live Tour. Since then, they have been dancing together on and off the stage.
While their wedding isn't around the corner just yet, in a new feature for Brides, the twosome gave a great tease, and Hayley even donned a variety of bridal gowns and dresses.
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As the two spoke with the outlet about the wedding planning process, they described it as both "surprising" and "stubborn," with them being determined to have their wedding pan out exactly as they want it to, all the while they're busy planning their fall 2023 dancing tour.
While Derek, 38, described the wedding planning process as surprising, admitting he didn't realize how much went into it, his fiancée, 28, on the other hand, was the one who landed on the word stubborn.
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She explained: "I’m really standing my ground," noting that while so many are offering their opinions on what they should do, she wants things to say as authentic to the couple as possible.
"I'm doing what I want," she added, before correcting herself to include Derek, maintaining: "I'm doing what we want."
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Derek also weighed in with: "We want to feel good and comfortable, but we don't need to be perfect… That's a lot less important to be than just looking into her eyes as we're rocking back and forth. I want to be truly present in that moment."
However, he still said: "The reason why we want to plan so much and make sure that the wedding is a well-oiled machine is so that we can be relaxed, focus on each other, and be very present [during the wedding]."
He added: "At the end of the day we come back to, 'Why are we doing this? What is the reason for this?' And the reason is for the two of us," noting: "That's really it."
Hayley and Derek announced their engagement on June 2, 2022, when the Dancing with the Stars judge shared a breathtaking photograph of Haley in his arms as they were surrounded by a variety of foliage and candles.They adoringly gazed into each other's eyes with her engagement ring sparkling on her finger, becoming part of the photo's light spectacle.
"It's only the beginning…the beginning of forever," he captioned his post at the time. It came as a total surprise to Hayley, she says, who also told Brides her soon-to-be husband is terrible at surprises, but when it came to something as major as an engagement, he executed it perfectly and without a hitch.
Scroll below for more photos of the soon-to-be newlyweds.
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