'Bachelorette' Alum Shawn Booth Expecting First Baby: 'I've Always Wanted to Be a Dad'

The former 'The Bachelorette' contestant is expecting his first baby, due in December

Shawn Booth is going to be a dad!

On a July 17 episode of his podcast "In the Booth with Shawn Booth," the former Bachelorette contestant, 37, revealed that he's expecting his first baby. "I've dated since the show. I've dated a bunch of people. I've had a girlfriend...I've always just kept things private," he began.

After noting that he had a "very big announcement," Booth shared that he was "going to be a dad."

"December 12, baby Booth on their way," he announced on the podcast. "It's happening. I'm going to be a father."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

"The mother is somebody who I've been close with for years. We've had a relationship and we've dated. This just isn't some random girl I met at Honky Tonk Central. This is a big surprise for both of us."

Revealing that "this wasn't something that was planned," Booth went on to say that "it will be and is the most beautiful surprise I've ever had in my life. And it's gonna be very special. I can't wait. I'm ready. I'm 37 years old. I've always wanted to be a dad."

Booth competed on Kaitlyn Bristowe's season of The Bachelorette, ending the season with an engagement. The pair were together for five years.

While Booth refrained from revealing the mother of his baby, he noted that he was hopeful she would join him on the podcast soon. He continued on to reveal that she is 18 weeks pregnant and that they don't plan to find out the sex of the baby.

"She's going to be such a good mother," Booth said. "And it's going to be incredible. It's very overwhelming. And it's also tough, too, for the dad because it takes a while to really fully grasp that you're having a kid — your body's not changing, you're not dealing with all the hormones, and you want to, as much as you can, help out."

"But you also can't really do anything...So she's been an absolute champ, a rock star through it all."

Acknowledging that the path to fatherhood hasn't been traditional for him, Booth shared, "I'm sure there will be a lot of people [who] have thoughts and opinions and all that. And I think now probably more than ever, I've gotten to a point where I'm like, 'I don't care what anybody thinks.'"

"If they're like, 'you're not married,' it's like, 'Listen, that's not what's important here.'"

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.