Peta Murgatroyd & Maks Chmerkovskiy find ‘new purpose’ in life

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Dancing With the Stars professional dancers Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Peta Murgatroyd found a “new meaning” in life when they first met their nephew Rome.

Rome is the first child of Maks’ brother Val Chmerkovskiy and his wife Jenna Johnson, who are also Dancing With the Stars pros.

Here’s what Peta and Maks had to say about the experience:

Peta Murgatroyd said meeting Baby Rome gave them “new purpose”.

Murgatroyd and Chmerkovskiy, who married and welcomed their son Shai in 2017, met their new nephew on February 21 and wrote about the life-changing experience on their Instagram accounts.

“Meeting Baby Rome. One of the special nights for our families. New life, new purpose and new joy!” Murgatroyd wrote alongside a series of photos of herself and Shai cuddling with the new baby. “It was so sweet to see you both @jennajohnson @valentin parent of this little angel. We love you all so much XO.”

Johnson answered“Rome loves you so much.”

On her own Instagram, Johnson shared a series of photos of her extended family, including a video of Maks cuddling and rocking the baby.

“Ohhh dear boy” wrote per Witney Carson in the comments.

“OMG he’s so cute! So happy for you guys,” he added Season 30 Finalist Amanda Kloots.

Maks Chmerkovskiy said it was a feeling he had never felt before

On his Instagram Stories, Chmerkovskiy posted the video of himself cuddling baby Rome and wrote that being an uncle feels completely different than being a father.

“Uncle is great!!! A completely different feeling that I have never felt before!” wrote the professional dancer. “Baby Rome is definitely a homie! What a time to be a Chmerkovskiy!”

Murgatroyd and Chmerkovskiy are preparing to become parents for the second time. Their son Shai turned 6 in January and now they are welcoming baby #2 in June 2023 after years of miscarriages and IVF treatments.

On Valentine’s Day, Murgatroyd posted a funny video on Instagram of the two post-camera muggings, writing: “Next 10 years together. Married almost 6 years. Almost 2 kids. Practically a lifetime in Hollywood years! to go forever Happy Valentines Day.”

In January when they announced they were expecting Murgatroyd posted an emotional message on Instagram about the “constant struggle and heartbreak” of the last few years trying to have a baby.

“It gives me great pleasure to finally announce that @maksimc and I are expecting our Chmerkovskiy #2,” the dancer wrote. “After 2 years of constant struggle and heartache, 3 miscarriages and a failed embryo transfer… we have a healthy bun in the oven :)) It came as a shock to all of us and we found out just before I went on my second round of IVF.
I want to thank EVERYONE who has been with me on this fertility journey from the beginning. It feels like sharing this news with my extended family. Thank you for sharing your stories and tips to get me through my IVF cycle and thanks for the abundance of encouraging comments and DMs…I read them all. This news has brought extraordinary happiness to our family and we have so much to be grateful for. …in June 2023.”

Dancing With the Stars returns for its 32nd season on Disney Plus in Fall 2023. There’s no word yet on which (if any) of the currently pregnant/just had a baby female pros are returning.

Johnson had her baby in January and Carson, Lindsay Arnold and Daniella Karagach are due in May, then Murgatroyd the following month.