Colton Underwood and Jordan C. Brown Expecting First Baby Together: 'An Incredible Experience' tram

Colton Underwood and Jordan C. Brown are going to be parents!

The former Bachelor star, 32, announced he is expecting his first baby via surrogate with his husband, political and philanthropic strategist Jordan C. Brown, 38, in an interview with Men's Health. The couple is set to welcome a baby boy in early October.

Underwood tells PEOPLE that he and Brown, who just celebrated their first wedding anniversary on May 13, can’t wait to be fathers.

“That was one of the things we bonded over early in our relationship. We both wanted to be dads,” says Underwood. “But it's been such an incredible experience for us to go through this together, and I cannot wait to watch Jordan become a dad.”

In February, Underwood opened up about his path to fatherhood to PEOPLE, sharing that he was chronicling his journey to become a parent on a new podcast, Daddyhood. At the time, Underwood shared that he and Brown had embryos made and frozen and were currently undergoing testing with their surrogate, whose identity they are keeping private. 

“I think outside of the LGBTQ+ matters — the obvious discrimination and what's at stake for us — straight couples too, need to stop putting the blame on the women. I think that's one thing that I could at least say, from two men going through this, is I've had some fertility issues and struggles, and I don't think a lot of men openly talk about that," Underwood shared.

“I mean right away, my husband gets his results back for his sperm count and he had incredible, great numbers, and I got mine back and all my sperm was dead. And I think immediately I was just like, 'Oh, what does this mean? It means I'm sterile and can't have kids now.' And it was not a great feeling," he added.

The couple first began their in vitro fertilization (IVF) and surrogacy journey two years ago, right around the time they also started to plan their wedding.  "It’s a fun time in our lives,” Underwood says now that they’re expecting with the help of their surrogate, who was the first one to share with the couple that they were pregnant. 

“Our doctor actually let our surrogate tell us, which I thought was so special. She got to text us and share the exciting news, and it was such a moment of, I think, relief for us,” the former NFL player says. “We're so fortunate and lucky to have her, but her to make us feel a part of it too, it was really special.” 

Underwood adds that he and his husband have developed a “beautiful friendship” with their surrogate, and they’ve even gotten to know her husband and her child, as well. 

“We're very protective over her. We've been to every single doctor's appointment. Her family's come over to the house for dinner. She's an incredible human being,” he says. "Family building isn't always black and white, so knowing that there's a percentage of loss and knowing that there's a percentage of complications that can happen is scary."

He continues: "And it's scary for two men who don't even have to go through it so that just proves how incredible these women are, not only our surrogate but all the surrogates out there, all the moms out there. It just puts a lot of things in perspective for us."

After finding out that they were going to be parents, Underwood says he and Brown took the first two days just to absorb the news before they started to share it with family and friends. 

“Everybody's been so excited. My family especially knows how long I've wanted to be a dad, and they just know my journey of coming out. [Wanting] to be a father was something that kept me in the closet for a long time," he admits. "So for me to be able to say we're pregnant is really big and really emotional.”

The pair is also busy preparing for their son’s fall arrival (if in very different ways, says Underwood). 

“I love Jordan’s approach, it just isn't for me. He has all of the baby apps on his phone, he has all of the baby books next to his nightstand, and has been reading them every night before bed,” Underwood says with a laugh. “I'm just more so doing research on my own, talking to people, sort of building community in a social way, versus the educational route that he's doing.”

The expecting fathers have already chosen a name for their son, though they’re waiting until they see him for the first time to make sure that the name truly fits before they tell the world. 

“I've ordered things with his name on it already, and I'm hiding them in boxes,” Underwood admits of his eagerness. “Jordan is referring to him as Baby B [because] we are not calling him by his name yet, which I get, but it's just made for a fun interaction between us.”

The “leading contender” for a name starts with a B, hence the “Baby B” nickname, but Underwood says he and Brown do have a few “backup” names picked out just in case they decide to make a game-time change at the hospital. 

No matter what their baby’s name ends up being, Underwood says that he and Brown are thrilled to be welcoming a little boy into the world, and the former athlete is most excited just to spend quality time with his baby. 

“Just bonding with my child, holding him, feeding him, changing him, wrapping him. I still have my same blanket that I went home from the hospital in, so I've kept it with me this entire time,” says Underwood. “Wrapping him in that and just loving on him and showing him the world, and being able to watch Jordan hold and feed him and having late nights and early mornings and all of the things that come with being a dad is what I'm looking forward to.”

Underwood met Brown, who served as an advisor for former President Barack Obama for both his 2008 and 2012 campaigns and then was an advisor to former presidential candidate and First Lady Hillary Clinton for the 2016 campaign, at a party in Los Angeles in April 2021. The couple then got engaged in February 2022 in Big Sur, California.

"It was very natural and organic, how it progressed," Underwood recalled to PEOPLE of their relationship, as Brown added, "We both just had a gut feeling."

In 2021, the reality TV star told Variety he was ready to settle down, saying that eventually, he wanted to add kids to the picture.

"I want a partner and a husband more than anything, and I want a family. I want kids, I want dogs, I want the whole nine yards, and I never knew that was possible until I came out and got to lean into my truth," he said.

The former NFL player added, "I can, for the first time in my life, actually picture myself with a family — and my family looks a little different than when I pictured it four or five years ago, but it just makes me happy, even thinking about it."

Underwood came out as gay in a Good Morning America interview that aired in April 2021. The former athlete noted that he's "the happiest and healthiest" he's ever been in his entire life.