When Nikki Bella ended her relationship with John Cena, she had both of their futures in mind, she says.

Bella appeared on Maria Menounos’ show Better Together, where she opened up about the difficult split, saying she ultimately called it quits over their differing stance on family and 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren.

“Overall, we did have such an incredible relationship, it was just two people that wanted two different lives,” she said. “We were trying so hard to make it one.”

The couple, who dated for nearly six years, struggled to connect when it came to their future as parents. Cena, 43, was steadfastly against having 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren, while Bella, 36, was vocal about her desire to be a mother.

Though Cena eventually agreed to have his vasectomy reversed in order to start a family with Bella, she ended the relationship in July 2018.

Looking back, Bella said she didn’t want Cena to regret his decisions.

“Even in the end when he was willing to give me kids, I could just tell, it’s not what we wanted. And that’s really, like, you know, what pushed me in the end, was like, if I’m going to force someone to be a father…what if he looks at you down the road and just regrets everything, and then you have this 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 and you’ve built this life,” she explained. “Is that what you want? And I remember thinking: it’s not what I want.”

A year later, Bella started officially dating Artem Chigvintsev, her former Dancing with the Stars partner.

Now, the Total Bellas star and Chigvintsev are preparing to start their own family. The couple is currently expecting their first 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 together. Bella and Chigvintsev got engaged during a romantic trip to France in November.

“I can’t believe I’m going to be a mom soon,” Bella previously told PEOPLE. “I’m going to have this person to take care of for the rest of their life and help them do the right things and just show them the way of the world. That’s amazing!”

“It’s something I’ve dreamed of my whole life,” she added. “So when I thought it was going to be taken from me, it was really difficult. Because I was just like, gosh, I can’t imagine life without being a mom and experiencing the miracle of life and raising a 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥. And I’m just so family-oriented that I couldn’t imagine not having that family life.”