Amazing Race alums Glenda Roberts and husband Lumumba reveal they are expecting 'miracle' baby despite being told they couldn't conceive naturally

Amazing Race alums Glenda Roberts and her husband Lumumba have revealed they are expecting their first child, a daughter.

The 42-year-old couple – who competed in season 34 of the CBS reality series -conceived naturally despite Glenda’s complicated reproductive health history.

Over the years, Glenda underwent two major surgeries on her uterus and later learned her fallopian tubes were blocked. They were told at the time that in-vitro fertilization (IVF) would be their only option.

‘I feel like it’s a miracle,’ she told PEOPLE. ‘I knew I wanted to be a mom. I always knew I wanted to be a mom and wife.’

Expecting: Amazing Race alums Glenda Roberts and her husband Lumumba have revealed they are expecting their first child, a daughter; seen in 2022

Glenda is currently in her second trimester and the baby will arrive sometime in the summer. They learned of the pregnancy in November.

The couple met at church when they were both 39 and, after getting married, they expressed mutual interest in starting a family. Their pregnancy journey kicked off before their 2022 stint on The Amazing Race and continued after.

Glenda’s reproductive health issues began at age 26 when doctors discovered an 8LB tumor on her uterus.

In order to remove the tumor, she underwent a myomectomy, which the Mayo Clinic defines as ‘a surgical procedure to remove uterine fibroids.’

Unlike a hysterectomy – which removes a woman’s uterus – a myomectomy leaves the uterus and only removes the growths. It ended up being the right route for Glenda since she hoped to one day conceive a child.

Journey: The 42-year-old couple – who competed in season 34 of the CBS reality series – conceived naturally despite Glenda’s complicated reproductive health history

But over a decade later, Glenda faced another reproductive obstacle.

She learned that another surgery on her uterus would be necessary to remove 31 fibroids.

Glenda admitted that she was ‘very reluctant to do the surgery’ due to her age and the trauma her uterus had already endured.

‘I just didn’t know if my uterus was strong enough to take another surgery and have a baby,’ she explained.

Despite her fertility fears, Glenda did go through with the surgery and for six months after the couple could not pursue pregnancy.

Miracle: ‘I feel like it’s a miracle,’ she told PEOPLE . ‘I knew I wanted to be a mom. I always knew I wanted to be a mom and wife’

It was during this six months that the couple trained and competed on The Amazing Race. They came in seventh place.

After completing their stint on the hit series and returning home, Glenda received more devastating news.

She was told by a fertility specialist that her fallopian tubes were blocked and IVF would be the couple’s only hope of welcoming a child into their lives.

But Glenda and Lumumba were soon taken by surprise when they discovered in November that she was six weeks pregnant.

‘We were hopeful, and either way it happened, we were going to be grateful to have a healthy baby. And so to have it naturally, we’re just so grateful,’ Glenda told the outlet.

Surprise! Glenda and Lumumba were soon taken by surprise when they discovered in November that she was six weeks pregnant

Emotional: The couple have since documented their gender reveal, as well as the exciting moment when Glenda got a positive result from a home pregnancy test, on their YouTube channel

The couple said their deep faith ‘played a huge part’ in the conception of their ‘miracle’ baby.

Glenda continued: ‘We didn’t have any backup. I never froze my eggs. We didn’t have anything we could lean on other than our faith. That’s all we had.’

By sharing their story, Glenda hopes to ‘encourage people that it’s possible to have a natural conception in your 40s’ and Lumumba believes their story is ‘going to touch somebody.’

The couple have since documented their gender reveal, as well as the exciting moment when Glenda got a positive result from a home pregnancy test, on their YouTube channel.

Glenda and Lumumba wed in May 2021 after getting engaged in November 2020.

Hope: ‘We were hopeful, and either way it happened, we were going to be grateful to have a healthy baby. And so to have it naturally, we’re just so grateful,’ Glenda told the outlet