'He is my real-life Prince Charming!' Today host Jill Martin, 43, reveals she is engaged to her banker boyfriend - who proposed in a romantic tent that he set up on a beach in the Hamptons
- Jill's fiancé Erik Brooks popped the question in the Hamptons last week
- She took to Instagram on Tuesday to share photos from the surprise proposal, writing: 'I SAID YES! I am over the moooooonnnnnnn'
- Jill confirmed the engagement to Today in an email, detailing how Erik told her that they were going to 'a friend's house for a casual kick-off to summer party'
- Once they arrived at the beach, Erik took Jill to the shore where he had set up a tent decorated with romantic mementos and got down on one knee
- Jill has kept her relationship with Erik relatively private, but in an essay she wrote in February, she detailed how she met the love of her life on a dating app in 2017
- Just a month before her surprise engagement, Jill opened up about her decision to freeze her eggs five years ago at the age of 38
Today lifestyle contributor Jill Martin is celebrating her engagement after her banker beau Erik Brooks popped the question in the Hamptons last week.
The 43-year-old television personality and author took to Instagram on Tuesday share photos from the surprise proposal, making it clear that she couldn't be happier about her future husband.
'I SAID YES! I am over the moooooonnnnnnn,' she captioned the post, which included an image of Erik down on his knee during his carefully planned proposal.
Something to celebrate! Jill Martin, 43, and her boyfriend Erik Brooks got engaged in the Hamptons last week
Going all out: The banker popped the question in a tent he set up on the beach. It was filled with romantic moments from their courtship
Dazzler: Jill happily showed off a huge rock on her finger as she celebrated the happy news
Jill confirmed the engagement to Today in an email while detailing how her new fiancé pulled off the surprise.
'[Eric] told me we were going to a friend's house for a casual kick-off to summer party,' she explained, noting that even went as far as sending her a Paperless Post with a fake invitation to the event.
'I kinda knew something was fishy but couldn’t put my finger on it!' she explained.
Once they arrived at the beach, Erik took Jill to the shore where he had set up a tent decorated with romantic mementos from their courtship.
'When I looked in the tent there were pics of us from the last year and eight months framed everywhere ... candles ... flowers ... all our favorite songs on a playlist,' she said.
It was there that Erik got down on one knee, but Jill was so stunned that she admitted she left him hanging for a bit.
'It took me a few mins to say yes — he actually said, 'Is the answer "yes"?' as I hadn't responded! I said of course! Yes!' she recalled.
Amazing: Just when Jill was wishing their families would be with them, Erik had their parents walk into the tent to surprise her
So happy: The Today correspondent said 'she knew something was fishy' when Erik told her that they were going to 'a friend's house for a casual kick-off to summer party'
Confession: Jill admitted she was so stunned that it took her a few minutes to accept Erik's proposal
Thrilled: The author happily flashed her diamond engagement ring while posing for photos
Just when Jill was wishing their families would be with them, Erik had their parents walk into the tent to surprise her.
The fashion correspondent noted that Erik's parents flew all the way in from Florida, while his three children, his sister, and the rest of the family arrived in the Hamptons the next day to spend the weekend with them.
'Best day of my life!' Jill said.
'[We] haven't even thought about a wedding date yet — just so happy to know I will be spending the rest of my life with him,' she added. 'He is my real-life Prince Charming. I couldn't have created a better storybook ending.'
Jill's Today co-stars gave her a shout-out on the morning show Tuesday, congratulating on her engagement.
'I think a lot of people are rooting for Jill,' Sheinelle Jones said. 'I remember when she got to the point where she was like, "Look I'm entering my 40s. I am resolved with being by myself. I am okay with myself. If somebody comes, they come, but you know what? I'm okay." And then, boom!'
Jill has kept her relationship with Erik relatively private, but in an essay that she wrote for Today in February, she detailed how she 'met the love of [her] life online' on a dating app in the fall of 2017.
Work family: Jill's Today co-stars gave her a shout-out on the morning show Tuesday, congratulating on her engagement
Look of love: Jill has kept her relationship with Erik relatively private, though he has appeared on the red carpet with her from time to time
Candid: In an essay she wrote in February, she detailed how she met the love of her life on a dating app in 2017
Mr. Right! Jill recalled how she went on date after date until she met Erik, a portfolio manager of Abry's Heritage fund
'After endless dates, failed relationships and many tears I decided (after much nudging from my mother) to try,' online dating she explained, recalling how she went on date after date until she met Erik, a portfolio manager of Abry's Heritage fund.
'After summing up my life in three sentences and finding a picture that represented me, I had finally swiped correctly,' she wrote. 'Erik is kind, honest, funny and puts family first: he has three beautiful children whom I adore.'
In addition to their shared values, Jill and Eric both have parents that have been married for the past five decades.
While the fashion guru's mom and dad celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in February, the banker's parents have been married for 55 years.
Just a month before her surprise engagement, Jill opened up about her decision to freeze her eggs five years ago at the age of 38.
'I thought it was giving myself an option in the future, whether I met someone or I did it on my own,' she told Page Six. 'I wanted to give myself that choice.'
Stepmom: 'Erik is kind, honest, funny and puts family first: he has three beautiful children whom I adore,' she wrote
At her own pace: Jill, who froze her eggs in her late 30s, said she no longer feels pressure to start having children immediately
Jill, who was single at the time, gave herself injections twice daily without ever giving up work, though she recalled it being a 'very intense, painful process.'
In addition to being a Today correspondent, she is a Knicks reporter and also appears on QVC, where she recently launched a decor line, G.I.L.I by Jill Martin Home.
Jill's candid interview about her decision to freeze her eggs came on the heels of her Today co-stars candidly speaking about growing their own families.
Meteorologist Dylan Dreyer shared that she's suffering from secondary infertility and is undergoing in vitro fertilization, while host Hoda Kotb recently adopted a second child at the age of 54.
With medical advancements allowing more and more women to have children in their 40s, she told Page Six that she no longer feels pressure to have kids as soon as possible.
'It is a pressure I put on myself and through this journey now [of talking about freezing my eggs], I’ve been able to take that pressure off myself,' she said. 'I’m veering off course while staying in my lane.'
