Emily Maynard, the Bachelorette who stole our hearts when she won the 15th season of The Bachelor in 2011, is now engaged AGAIN! This time, and hopefully her last time, the North Carolina native is planning to wed boyfriend Tyler Johnson.
Maynard first broke the news on Good Morning America on January 14, saying that she and Johnson would be walking down the aisle “soon.”
She later revealed to Us Weekly that Johnson proposed to her on January 4, presenting rings to both Maynard and her 8-year-old daughter.
“He proposed to me at home and gave both Ricki and me rings. It was so sweet! Ricki loves him more than she likes me!” (Ricki is Maynard’s daughter with her first fiance, the late NASCAR driver Ricky Hendrick. Hendrick tragically perished in a plane crash before the young couple learned that they were expecting a child, just six months after the pair became engaged.)
The former Bachelorette took to her website last Friday to officially break the news to her followers and post some pictures of she and Johnson – and her new ring(s).
“Assuming you haven’t been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard the news but if not, I’m here to let the cat out of the bag. I’m ENGAGED!” Maynard wrote. “And no, it’s not to someone I met on a reality show or even a dating site, but to an amazing man I met through my church, Forest Hill, in Charlotte. I should’ve known all along that God was going to do things His way!”
Of her lavish finger candy, Maynard says that she told Johnson that she didn’t want something traditional to serve as her engagement ring, so he chose a stack of gorgeous, diamond-encrusted bands for his bride.
Those bands have now become the most talked-about aspect of the couple’s entire engagement; Twitter, Instagram, and numerous magazines and websites, alike, are positively abuzz with pictures and comments about Maynard’s unique jewels.
I'm IN LOVE with Emily Maynard's engagement stack! This is SO much cooler than a simple solitaire engagement ring. pic.twitter.com/vIIHbipUzG
— Morgan Hill Sellers (@mhsellers) February 1, 2014
VIDEO: See Emily Maynard's Engagement Ring http://t.co/nS213UFDzY
— E! News Now (@ENewsNow) January 9, 2014
Emily Maynard, although just 26, has been engaged three times prior to Johnson; after the loss of Ricky Hendrick, Emily appeared as a contestant on ABC’s, The Bachelor, where she became engaged to Brad Womack. The relationship and engagement both ended, however, shortly after the show aired in 2011.
Later that year, though, Emily got another chance at love when she became the Bachelorette, and ultimately fell in love with, and agreed to marry, suitor Jef Holm. Sadly, the two could not make it as a couple, either, and she and Holm called off their wedding in October 2012.
Finally, however, Emily may actually get the chance to wear white; the bride-to-be recently said, “We definitely are looking to get married sooner rather than later. No point in waiting!”
Obviously, this is a good thing since her track record hasn’t been so great in love; the southern blonde from Charlotte is impossible to dislike, though, and we wish Emily, Tyler, and Ricki a lifetime of happiness.
Main image courtesy Emily Maynard via EmilyMaynard.com.