"She actually said 'yes' before I could open the box to show her the ring," Horstmann tells PEOPLE of his surprise proposal to Gibelli
Blake Horstmann and Giannina Gibelli are engaged!
The Bachelor in Paradise star, 35, popped the question to Gibelli, 31, on Oct. 30 during a sunset proposal in Parque del Retiro in Madrid, Spain, the couple exclusively tells PEOPLE. Horstmann presented the Love Is Blind alum with a 4.87-carat oval lab-grown diamond ring by Brilliant Earth. The stunning piece also features an 18-karat yellow gold "Luxe Versailles" shank detailed with small diamonds.
"I had been looking for the perfect ring for over a year," Horstmann says. "I had an idea of what she wanted -- cut, clarity, etc. -- but I didn't want to go and pick out a ring with her. I really wanted the ring to be a complete surprise."
Indeed, Gibelli was so thrilled by the surprise proposal, he shares, that "she actually said 'yes' before I could open the box to show her the ring."
Related: Giannina Gibelli and Blake Horstmann Celebrate Their First Anniversary with 'Magical' Getaway
"When she did finally see [the ring], she was breathless and so happy, so that felt really amazing," Horstmann recalls, adding, "We are over the moon and we can't wait to be married in front of our loved ones."
Gibelli describes the engagement as "the best feeling in the world."
"Our love story has been everything I've always dreamt it would be and more," she tells PEOPLE. "As soon as I met Blake, I knew he was my soulmate and I know the universe was always leading me to him. Being together forever and creating our family is literally the joy of my life."
The pair first met while filming the crossover reality TV series All Star Shore, which aired in 2022. In July that year, Gibelli revealed that she and Horstmann -- who was also a contestant in season 14 of The Bachelorette -- were already having engagement conversations.
"I'm definitely not uncomfortable talking about being engaged to him or just spending the rest of my life with him," she told E! News. "I think the feeling's mutual, and I would be the happiest person in the entire world, but no rush."
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She added, "Everything has its own time and needs to develop naturally, but honestly, I'm good. This is it. This is it for me."
Months later, Gibelli shared on Instagram that she had officially moved into Horstmann's Colorado home. Alongside a series of loved-up photos of the couple in their cozy digs, she wrote, "Honey I'm homeeeeee (officially) 🤍."
Related: Love Is Blind's Giannina Gibelli Expecting First Baby with The Bachelorette's Blake Horstmann (Exclusive)
Last November, the couple had even more big news to share. They revealed exclusively to PEOPLE that they were expecting a baby together, and their family and friends were overjoyed.
"No one was expecting it, but their reactions have been spectacular," they told PEOPLE at the time.
"There was a lot of screaming, happy tears and jumping around," Gibelli added. "I think our friends' jaws are still on the ground. Our baby is so loved already."
Their son, named Heath Orion, made his arrival on March 29. "His first breath took ours away 💙," Gibelli wrote on Instagram as the couple shared the first photos of their newborn. "Everyone is home happy and healthy -- his pregnancy and birth were a dream come true."
"Our lives are brighter, fuller, and forever better," she continued. "Thank you for all of the love and well wishes, Heath has so many people who love him 💫. We're parents!"
Though he is only 7 months old, baby Heath has already enjoyed some big adventures with his parents. In recent weeks, as seen on Gibelli's Instagram, the family has visited Disneyland and embarked on a mini tour of Europe with stops in Paris and of course Madrid, where Heath got to be part of his mom and dad's engagement.
"Grew up coming here and now I get to share it with my own little fam, what is life 🫶🏽," Gibelli wrote of their time in the Spanish capital.