Blake Shelton Asked Gwen Stefani's 3 Sons 'For Their Permission' Before Proposing: Source

Before Blake Shelton got down on one knee at his Tishomingo, Oklahoma, ranch to propose to longtime love Gwen Stefani last month, he made sure to first get approval from three very important people: her sons Kingston, 14, Zuma, 12, and Apollo, 6.

"Blake told her boys that he wanted to propose and asked their permission," a source close to Stefani tells PEOPLE in this week's issue, on newsstands Friday. "Her family very much approves of him. He's an amazing partner and a great extra dad to the boys. Gwen is ecstatic. The proposal was a surprise."

Though the country star, 44, and No Doubt rocker, 51, kept their long-awaited news private for several days, the source says the couple were "very excited" to share it with the world on Oct. 27, when they posted a joyful joint announcement showing off the ring on Instagram.

"Yes please," Stefani simply captioned her post, while Shelton wrote, "Hey @gwenstefani thanks for saving my 2020 and the rest of my life. I love you. I heard a YES!"

Shelton and Stefani have long said they were each other's "forever," but the singers — who simultaneously went through painful divorces five years ago — wanted to make sure to build a solid foundation before walking down the aisle.

"Going through all these hard times, [you] get to a place where you find somebody that's like your best friend, that you know you can depend on and trust," Stefani told Today in 2018. "We're just trying to be in the moment as much as we can."

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After Stefani joined the seventh season of NBC’s singing competition show The Voice in 2014, she and Shelton became friendly coworkers. It wasn't until a year later, when both their hearts were on the mend from their divorces, that sparks flew. (In 2015, Stefani announced her split from Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale after 20 years together, just weeks after Shelton and his ex-wife, country singer Miranda Lambert, finalized their divorce following four years of marriage.)

"Gwen saved my life. Who else on earth could understand going through a high-profile divorce from another musician?" Shelton told Billboard in 2016. "You can't even imagine the similarities in our divorces."

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Though the Stefani source says she "had a hard time seeing herself dating again" after her divorce, Shelton soon became "everything she could have ever asked for and more."

Amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Stefani and Shelton spent much of their time quarantining in Oklahoma with Stefani's sons. While there in July, they released their duet "Happy Anywhere," a follow-up to their earlier collaboration "Nobody But You," which hit No. 1 on Billboard's Country Airplay chart and earned them a CMT Music award last month.

They've since returned to Los Angeles to shoot the current season of The Voice and settle into their new $13 million home, which they bought in May.

"Gwen just loves sharing her life with Blake," the source says. "He gives her so many things that were missing from her life for years."

For all the details on Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani's engagement, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere Friday.