Eva Marcille and husband Michael Sterling "look forward to welcoming another generation of hope into this world," the dad-to-be tells PEOPLE exclusively

'No. 3 Is on Board!' Baby on the Way for RHOA Star Eva Marcille and Husband Michael Sterling

Eva Marcille is gearing up for round three of motherhood.

The Real Housewives of Atlanta star is 17 weeks pregnant with her third child and second with husband Michael Sterling, she reveals exclusively to PEOPLE in this week’s issue, on newsstands Friday.

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Marcille, 34, reveals her happy news alongside a pair of cute maternity photos, showing her taking a drink from a smoothie glass in bed while her bare belly — complete with a drawn-on face — “sips” from its own straw, using her belly button as its mouth.

The mom-to-be was styled and photographed by Terrell Mullin, and is surrounded by pillows from her own Eva Marcille Home Collection.

“Michael and I couldn’t be more excited to announce baby No. 3 is on board!” Marcille tells PEOPLE of her little one on the way, who will join the couple’s 1-year-old son Michael Todd Jr. and Marcille’s daughter Marley Rae, 5, from a previous relationship.

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Image zoom Eva Marcille

She jokes in addition, “Looks like little Michael Jr. is going from the baby to the middle child, and Marley will be the boss of them all!”

“It’s amazing that God shared his most amazing superpower with us: the power to create and give life,” Sterling tells PEOPLE. “I count it a great blessing to grow our family with the love of my life, Eva Marcille Sterling, and we look forward to welcoming another generation of hope into this world.”

Image zoom Terrell Mullin

The couple welcomed Michael Jr. in April 2018, and tied the knot the following October during a private ceremony in Atlanta, a source confirmed to PEOPLE at the time.

Marcille and Sterling were in tears as they said their “I dos” in front of 220 guests, including their kids, as shown on RHOA in March. It was a beautiful affair that had Marcille’s RHOA castmates NeNe Leakes, Kandi Burruss, Cynthia Bailey, Porsha Williams, Shamari DeVoe, Tanya Sam and Marlo Hampton overcome with emotion, too.

Image zoom Eva Marcille and Michael Sterling Paras Griffin/Getty Images

RELATED VIDEO: All the Details from Eva Marcille’s (Over-Budget) Fairytale Wedding



Perhaps the most touching moment of the ceremony was when the America’s Next Top Model cycle 3 winner and Sterling exchanged the vows they had written.

“I promise to love you unconditional, unrelenting, comforting and eternal,” the groom said. “I promise you not only this present love, but future love. The future love that can’t forecast the unpredictability of life but is prepared to withstand the hardships, the pains, and the struggles.”

“I vow that you will never be alone because no matter where you go, my love will always be with you,” he continued. “And when God sees fit to take us from this place, I promise you that I will ask Her that she will let me be with you in this next life. Because I don’t want to imagine this life or any life without you.”

Marcille told the audience during her turn, “Growing up I was not the girl who had the idea of a fairytale wedding. But now I am just overwhelmed with emotion. To be at this place today with an amazing man? What did I do to deserve this amount of favor and blessings?”

PEOPLE exclusively learned that Marcille was pregnant with Michael Jr. in November 2017, saying her daughter wasn’t shy about expressing her desire for a baby brother.

“I said, ‘Marley, would you like to have a little brother or sister?’ And she said, ‘Yes, Mom, but you know what? Maybe a baby brother. Make it a brother,’ ” she recalled of the sweet conversation between herself and her little girl.

“I thought that was adorable, but at the time, I had no idea what I was having, so my fear [about] this extremely expressive and outgoing young girl [was] if this baby came out to be a little girl, that might not be a great situation for Marley,” added Marcille with a laugh.