Arie Luyendyk Jr. is only two episodes in to his stint as The Bachelor, but already he has baby on the brain. After meeting 29 potential wives on the premiere of the ABC reality dating show, Arie says he is “happy” with his overall experience on the show. While the outcome of Arie Luyendyk Jr.’s Bachelor journey remains under wraps, the race car driver/realtor is not hiding the fact that he is ready to be a dad.
In a new interview with the Hollywood Reporter , Arie Luyendyk Jr. revealed that he is ready to get back to his real life in Arizona and that his five-year plan includes settling down with a “special someone” and becoming a father. While Arie admits he went through a serial dating phase after his heart was broken by Emily Maynard her season of The Bachelorette five years ago, he says things have changed for him over the past couple of years.
“For me, just because I’m 36 now and people around me are all getting married and having kids, I think that was the big shift to really make me realize it’s time to settle down,” Luyendyk told THR .
“I want to be a dad really bad. I want to get married first, but I’m almost more excited about being a parent just because I want that step of my life.”
Arie Luyendyk Jr. admitted that he has been a bit envious of fellow Bachelor buddies Sean Lowe and John Wolf as they settle into fatherhood.
“I’m just having a little bit of baby fever, I think, as a man, which is kind of funny,” Arie said.
Bachelo r fans know that Arie Luyendyk Jr. has already lived an amazing life, traveling the world as a race car driver. But now Arie is ready for his next phase. On ABC’s recent pre- Bachelor special, Countdown To Arie , the reality star revealed that all of his friends are married with children and that his status as a childless single male struck him when he went to his much younger brother Alec’s wedding.
“It kind of hit me the most, when I was at your wedding, and I was there alone, and I was kind of like, ‘Man … I’m definitely missing something,’ ” Arie told his little brother.
As for Arie Luyendyk Jr.’s Bachelorette ex, Emily Maynard recently gave birth to her fourth child. Emily was a single mom to daughter Ricky during her season of The Bachelorette but in the five years since the show—and her relationship with short-lived final pick Jef Holm—ended, she has had three more babies with husband Tyler Johnson.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqXSFfXUL0g
The Bachelor airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
