Derek Hough is experiencing a wave of emotions ahead of becoming a dad.

The Dancing with the Stars judge joked he has "absorbed" all of his 31-year-old wife Hayley Erbert's pregnancy feelings as the couple gears up to welcome their first child together.

Derek, 40, told E! News: "I'm freaking out, or I'm emotional, or I'm crying. She has been the Zen Buddha, just at peace. She's been incredible."

The star said it has been a joy to watch his "bada**" spouse prepare for motherhood.

Derek gushed: "Honestly, it's been really amazing to watch, to observe and to just witness her being an incredible mother before she has this child."

The couple - who tied the knot in front of 106 guest at their fairytale Monterey County, California wedding in 2023 - announced in July that they are expecting their first child together.

Since then, Derek has been learning as much as he can about pregnancy.

He shared: "I've been having classes with the doulas and midwives, learning all about the pregnancy. Just all these different things and all these tools to really understand this birth, because it's going to be a very intimate birth.

"It's going to be a little different, so I have to make sure I know what I'm doing."

Derek hopes his experience of being a mentor will stand him in good stead as a dad.

He said: "I'm at my best as a person when I'm helping somebody or just being present and hearing them speak."

Welling up, the choreographer continued: "I get emotional thinking about it, where I get to guide, mentor, love this human being from day one."

Smiling, he added: "It's gonna be amazing and I'm looking forward to what it all is going to do and mean for me as a dad, as a person, as a man and what's going to evolve within me and change."

Elsewhere, Derek is excited about planning trips and activities with his little one.

In September, he told People: "Going to Disneyland, or going on trips, and just seeing their wonderment, and their eyes, just wide open.

"I can't wait to experience things for the first time with my beautiful child."