Simon Cowell proposes to longtime girlfriend Lauren Silverman

Jan. 12 (UPI) -- Simon Cowell and Lauren Silverman are engaged.

The couple got engaged on Christmas Eve in Barbados, where they first met.

Cowell, 62, proposed to Silverman, 44, as they were walking on the beach together.

The wedding took place during a family vacation with their 7-year-old son Eric and Silverman's 16-year-old son Adam.

The couple welcomed their son Eric in February 2014.

Powell hinted that he would marry Silverman back in 2013 while she was pregnant.

They announced her pregnancy before Silverman was officially divorced from Cowell's friend Andrew Silverman, with whom she has a son.

Cowell expressed his regrets about having an affair with Silverman while she remained married to his best friend but accepted the criticism that came along with it.