Hayley Erbert gets real about bittersweet reality of motherhood

Hayley Erbert poured her heart out in a deeply emotional message, laying bare the bittersweet reality of motherhood.

Three months after becoming a mother, the 31-year-old is opening up about the joy and heartache that comes with the new title.

Taking to her Instagram on Saturday, April 11, she wrote a lengthy and heartfelt note for her daughter.

“My love. My girl. My world. [red heart emoji],” she began. “Motherhood is even more complex and contradicting than I could have ever imagined.”

The professional dancer welcomed her first baby, a daughter named Everley Capri Hough, with Dancing With The Stars pro Derek Hough on December 29, 2025.

“It feels like living in two places at once. Where joy and heartache can both be true, all of the time. My heart is constantly bursting open, while also breaking into a million pieces,” she continued. “I find myself celebrating every little bit of your growth, while quietly grieving the version of you that existed just moments before.”

The doting mum went on to express her excitement for all the “firsts” and the new chapters together with her baby girl yet wishes to freeze the time and never have any “lasts”.

“If this is the dichotomy of motherhood, then I’ll try my best to meet it with open arms,” Hayley, who suffered a life-threatening cranial hematoma (brain bleed) in December 2023, added. “Soaking in every little detail, every version of you, every fleeting moment we have together. I love being your mom. I love you beyond, Everley. I have truly never felt a love like this.”

The couple announced the arrival of their "rainbow baby" in January, marking a joyous moment following Hayle’s emergency brain surgery and a previous miscarriage.