Candiace Dillard Bassett Is Pregnant! RHOP Star Expecting First Baby with Husband Chris Bassett tram

   

Candiace Dillard Bassett

Candiace Dillard Bassett is going from Bravo to baby! 

The former Real Housewives of Potomac star, 37, is pregnant, expecting her first child with husband Chris Bassett, 46.

PEOPLE can confirm the happy news, which the “Drive Back” singer — who records under the moniker Candiace — first revealed in a sit-down with Entertainment Tonight. 

"I am about 13 weeks ... so just about into the second trimester," she told the outlet. "It's been weird, but also really wonderful, I think, to keep it kind of to ourselves to this point. ... It's just been, like, kind of quietly just growing a bun."

Chris Bassett, Candiace Dillard Bassett
The Bassett family expansion comes after PEOPLE broke the bombshell that Candiace wouldn’t be returning to RHOP after season 8. She left the reality franchise after six years on the show, having first joined in season 7. 

“As I embark on a new chapter after six remarkable years with The Real Housewives of Potomac, I am filled with gratitude for the enriching friendships, personal growth and moments of introspection that have defined this journey,” Candiace said. ”With a whirlwind of new opportunities and responsibilities on my plate, I have decided to take a break from RHOP.”

She went on to tease that her exit might only be temporary, noting, “This is not a farewell, but a ‘see you later.’ “

The “Drive Back” songstress ended her note with a message of thanks to her fans, saying, “Your unwavering support has been my guiding light, and I look forward to the exciting adventures that lie ahead — and more importantly, sharing them all with you!"

THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF POTOMAC -- Pictured: (l-r) Candiace Dillard, Chris Bassett -- (Photo by: Paul Morigi/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
Candiace and Chris met while working at a restaurant together in Washington D.C., where he was the manager and she was a server. He proposed in May 2017, surprising her with all their friends and family.

The two married in August 2018 at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in D.C. in an extravagant wedding that was filmed for the show. 

Kids were a hot topic for Candiace, who is a “bonus mom” of three kids Chris has from a previous marriage. 

As RHOP documented, she long debated whether she was ready to have a child of her own, juggling other priorities like her emerging music career, getting her Executive MBA at the School of Business at Howard University and moving into a new home. 

"But then I got the itch," she told ET. "I always wondered, like, how would I know when I was ready? And I always felt like a part of my anxiety was that I wasn't sure that I would know, and when I knew, it was undeniable."

Candiace underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF) in January to conceive, using one of the embryos they froze two years ago. 

The couple say they had one male embryo and one female embryo, so they don't know yet whether they're having a boy or a girl.

"It's so cool that you literally have no idea what you're getting," said Candiace, adding that she's looking forward to being a part of the "mom community" now. "It's a space I've kind of been peering into from the outside, most of my friends and my cousins have kids. I've helped raise and change diapers and babysit all of my cousins' kids, so it's just gonna be fun to be a part of that community and, you know, to learn and grow as a member now."