Laila Ali and her husband, former NFL star Curtis Conway, are expecting their first child together, she confirms exclusively to Essence magazine.

"I don't know yet if we are having a boy or a girl, but I'm excited that I have a life inside me that my husband and I created," Ali says in the May issue, which hits newsstands April 11.

The boxing champ, who co-hosts American Gladiators, and Conway married last July in the rose garden of the Ritz-Carlton in Marina del Rey, Calif.

Among the 200 guests were Laila's parents, Muhammad Ali and Veronica Porsche Anderson, along with her sister Hana Ali, who was a bridesmaid.

This is the first child for Ali and the fourth for Conway, who has twin sons, Kelton and Cameron, 13, and a daughter Leilani, 9.

"I am 100 percent undeniably happy," Ali tells ESSENCE. "I've never been able to say that before."

Ali, 30, and Conway, 37, met at his house, when he hosted a small get-together, which Ali attended with a friend. The pair became engaged on Thanksgiving 2006.

Shortly after their wedding, Ali told PEOPLE that married life was "excellent."

"My husband and I are best friends," she said. "We have great communication and we respect each other."

aww congrats!

source: people.com