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Jill Duggar Engaged: 19 Kids and Counting Star Reveals Romantic Proposal From Derick Dillard

Jill Duggar and Derick Dillard
19 Kids and Counting star Jill Duggar is engaged to marry Derick Dillard

19 Kids & Counting…down the days to a wedding! Jill Duggar, the fourth child of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, is engaged to marry Derick Dillard, the couple confirmed to ABC News on Wednesday, April 9.

"When my dad first introduced Derick and I [remotely], we spent hours texting, calling, and talking on Skype while 8,000 miles away from each other. And when we finally met in person in Nepal, we knew within days that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together," Jill, 22, said in a statement about the engagement. (Derick was doing missionary work in Nepal when Jim Bob connected them.)

Related: PHOTOS: The best celeb engagement rings ever

"I love Derick's desire to follow God and to serve others," she added. "Derick is so romantic and the proposal was perfect."

Perfectly planned, too. Derick, 25, told ABC News he asked Jill's father, Jim Bob, for her hand in marriage back in February, and then spent the next several weeks crafting the perfect moment.

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It happened, he revealed, after a typical lunch date. The lovebirds — accompanied by two chaperones, per the Duggars' rules of courtship — were walking through a park together when they came across a singer/songwriter on a bench. "[He] was like, 'Oh, hey, you look like a nice couple,'" Derick recalled. "'I think I have a song for you guys.'"

The song, it turned out, had been co-written by Derick about their relationship. When it ended, he dropped to one knee and presented Jill with a ring: a white gold band with a round, .63-carat solitaire diamond from Israel.

Related: PHOTOS: Reality TV's breakout stars

Next up for the couple? Planning their wedding, which is set for this summer. "I think it'll probably be a Duggar-sized wedding with lots of friends and lots of family, and everything centered on God," Jill said of the nuptials, which will also mark the couple's first-ever kiss. (Per the Duggars' rules, no physical contact — including hand-holding! — is allowed during courtship.) "We're looking forward to it!" she added.

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