Valentin Chmerkovskiy and fiancée Jenna Johnson aren’t wasting any time when it comes to wedding planning.
The Dancing with the Stars pro told PEOPLE that the newly engaged couple have already started planning their big day.
“It’s good. Wedding planning is good, it’s happening,” he said at Victoria Arlen’s Locked In book launch on Thursday. “It’s organic, it’s stress-free.”
Chmerkovskiy proposed to Johnson during a romantic trip to Venice, Italy, in June.
The dancer said they are working to find a way to include aspects from both their cultures at the ceremony.
“Trying to fuse a Jewish-Russian family with a Mormon family from Utah definitely is a challenge,” he said.
Along with planning his upcoming nuptials, Chmerkovskiy will also serve as a judge on the upcoming ABC spin-off Dancing with the Stars: Juniors.
“I think it was exactly what I was made to do,” he said of the experience. “I am passionate about dance, I grew up in dance, I was a young kid competing in dance, so I have a great perspective on it. On top of that, as an adult, my own passion has been philanthropical with kids and mentorship and helping the next generation be extraordinary. To have a voice in that project, to be able to validate and educate and motivate these incredible kids is a dream come true for me personally.”
He also said that working with kids has only made him more excited to be a father one day.
“I’ve wanted to be a father since I was a teenager. I love and appreciate and respect my father,” he says. “He has paved an incredible way for me, and I want to do the same for others.”
