DWTS’ Derek Hough announces birth of daughter two years after wife Hayley Erbert’s health scare

Erbert suffered a nearly fatal cranial hematoma in December 2023

Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert have welcomed a baby girl.

The Dancing with the Stars alums announced that their daughter, Everley Capri Hough, was born December 29.

“Every step of our lives has led us to you. Our hearts have been cracked wide open and our world is forever changed,” the couple wrote in an Instagram post shared Monday. The photos shared a look at their baby, showing the couple cupping their daughter’s tiny feet with their hands.

Excited messages congratulating the family have flooded the comments section of the post, including from Hough’s sister, Julianne Hough, who wrote, “Welcome to the world sweet angel Everley.”

Everley’s arrival comes two years after Erbert, a professional dancer who joined DWTS in 2015, underwent emergency brain surgery due to a burst blood vessel while on the DWTS tour in December 2023, four months after the couple got married. After the craniectomy, Erbert had a skull implant before she returned to the stage just four months later.

Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert have announced the birth of their first daughter (Getty)

Following his wife’s health scare, the DWTS judge praised her strength throughout recovery on Instagram, writing: “It was a time filled with uncertainty and fear, going from living our dreams onstage, to a nightmare in an instant. Her recovery process has been nothing short of a miracle.”

The couple announced their pregnancy on social media in July 2025. Alongside a video of the pair revealing their sonogram, they wrote, “We can’t believe the biggest thing to happen to us could be so small.”

In October 2025, the couple also opened up about losing a previous pregnancy in 2024, saying: “Although we are so excited to be welcoming our rainbow soon, we honor our baby that never made it earthside.”

Erbert reflected on her health further in an Instagram post in December, writing, “Two years ago today, I was given a second chance at life through life-saving brain surgery. In these two years, I’ve gone through every human emotion imaginable, the kind that cracks you open and the kind that puts you back together.

She continued: “I’ve reclaimed parts of myself I thought I’d never find again, rediscovered who I am, and moved through seasons of loss, triumph, joy, endless fear, grief, healing, and quiet hope. It was a whirlwind to say the least.. But I’m truly grateful for it all, and so incredibly proud of myself and my body for everything it has endured. What a miracle it is that two years ago I was fighting for my life… and now, here I am creating life.”