Gwen Stefani Says She and Blake Shelton Had a Lot of 'Healing to Do' Before Deciding to Get Married

Gwen Stefani says getting engaged didn't come without "a lot to consider."

While appearing virtually as a guest on the Today show on Thursday morning, the 51-year-old singer, who became engaged to her fiancé Blake Shelton in October, spoke candidly about her engagement and detailed the behind-the-scenes thought processes that she and her soon-to-be-husband had to go through before deciding to take that next step in their relationship.

Asked by Hoda Kotb if she was "gun shy" about getting engaged to Shelton, 44, after both stars had previously gone through their own respective divorces — Stefani from Gavin Rossdale and Shelton from Miranda Lambert — the "Let Me Reintroduce Myself" crooner told the Today co-host, "I think there was a lot to consider when you have so many people involved. Children, and their hearts, and everybody in my family [and] his family, we all went through a lot together."

"So I think in a romantic way, when you fall in love so hard and so unexpectedly — and so late in your life — you think 'I want to marry you!' That's the first romantic reaction, like, 'Let's get married,'" she continued. "So we always talked about it, of course, and I think that as the years were going by, it didn't need to happen. There was a lot of healing to do."

Then, detailing that their relationship and Shelton's proposal "was just natural," Stefani added: "It's funny because he basically had the ring and it was right around my birthday. I was getting a little bit anxious ... cause I started having a little insecurity and so it was right on time."

Shelton proposed to Stefani at his ranch in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, where they spent the majority of the lockdown period together amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic with her kids. They announced their engagement on Instagram on Oct. 27.

A source previously told PEOPLE that the couple is "ready to get married" after falling in love on the set of The Voice in 2015. "This won't be a long engagement. There is a reason why Blake proposed now. They are both ready to get married," the source said. "They don't want a huge wedding. They want their family and close friends to attend and that's it."

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After news of their engagement, another insider also told PEOPLE that Shelton asked Stefani's three sons — Kingston, 14, Zuma, 12, and Apollo, 6 — for permission before he proposed.

"Blake told her boys that he wanted to propose and asked their permission," the insider said. "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."

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During her chat on Today, Stefani also spoke about her love for Shelton further after co-host Carson Daly asked what she attributes their love to.

"What don't I love about Blake and what don't we all love about Blake?" she began. "He's just such a good guy, he's one of the most generous human beings and down to earth [people] — it all sounds generic — but it's just so true."

"He's so gifted and so unique and talented and he really is my best friend," she continued. "And I feel just so excited that I have someone in my life that now I have a chance at happiness for a long time to come and it's just a blessing, the whole thing, and it is a miracle."

Stefani added: "It's weird how things happen and you just don't see things that are right around the corner after such devastation."

The Today co-hosts also presented Stefani with a gift during the morning broadcast — a pair of wedding cowbells — which Kotb, 56, playfully told the musician she would find "cute."