Home for the holidays? Tarek El Moussa and Heather Rae Young are heading into their first holiday season together as a loving couple, but their Christmas plans are still up in the air.
“We’re not quite sure yet. I know the entire family is getting together, and we’ve been talking about it,” El Moussa, 38, told Us Weekly exclusively on Friday, December 13. “It’s a little last-minute, but we’re not sure what we’re doing yet.”
Young, meanwhile, shared that she’s “excited to spend the holidays” with her beau’s children, Taylor, 9, and Brayden, 4, during the couple’s first Christmas together. She’s also “excited to be involved in their traditions.”
Though the pair’s holiday plans are still a work in progress, El Moussa and Young have already exchanged gifts weeks before the big day.
“Tarek gave me a present early,” the Selling Sunset star, 32, told Us. “When we were in Paris, he gave me a beautiful watch and I feel like I can’t really expect more since it is such an amazing gift. I’m in love with it and it was very special that he gave it to me when we were in Paris.”
Young said that she’s also gotten the Flip or Flop star “a few things” so far, adding: “I gave him one thing early because it’s hard for me to hold off on surprises, but I think it’s mainly important to focus on the kids and not as much on each other this time of year.”
El Moussa — who split from Christina Anstead in December 2016 after seven years of marriage — first sparked romance rumors with Young when they were spotted packing on PDA in July while aboard his boat in Redondo Beach, California.
Their relationship has heated up since then, with El Moussa introducing Young to his kids, who he shares with ex-wife Anstead. He opened up about his girlfriend’s connection with Taylor and Brayden in an interview earlier this month with Today Parents. The Tarek’s Flip Side star noted that Taylor was “comfortable” with his girlfriend “right away” and Brayden is “a lot more comfortable with her now. He also revealed they all “play a lot and are building a nice bond together.”
“I wasn’t someone who was just dating a bunch of different women. I was waiting for the right one, who I thought would be right not only for me, but for my kids to meet,” he told the news outlet on December 2. “With Heather, I knew right away, and that was it.”
As El Moussa’s relationship with Young continues to strengthen, the couple have hinted at the possibility of tying the knot in the near future — and Young already has a destination in mind.
“I’ve never envisioned my wedding because I never met anyone that I wanted to get married to until Tarek,” Young told Us on December 13. “But I have fallen in love with Italy and I would love to maybe do something in Italy … I’m not one of those girls that have thought about it their whole life. I’m just really excited to see what happens in the future.”
With reporting by Carly Sloane
