Nicole Richie to Finally Marry Joel Madden

*After a three-year courtship that has produced two children, Nicole Richie and Joel Madden have finally decided to tie the knot.

Joel sent out a tweet confirming the impending nuptials after word leaked on Monday.

“Yep. i’m engaged. Very happy. Yeah we’ve been engaged for a while so your all kind of late on that. But Thanks for the hooplah all the same,” Madden Tweeted Monday night. He also expressed thanks to relatives who did not let word of the engagement slip.

“P.s. thats why i love my family and friends,” he tweeted. “None of them are sources. All good tight lipped people who let us enjoy it! Thanks everybody”

Richie then confirmed the news during a Monday taping of the “Late Show with David Letterman.”

Her dad, Lionel Richie, tells People.com he is thrilled to be able to walk his daughter down the aisle.

“My happiness for Nicole and Joel knows no boundaries,” the singer stated. “They have given me two beautiful grandchildren, Harlow and Sparrow, and have proven to be great parents.”

Richie recently worked with the couple on the star-studded “We Are The World 25 For Haiti,” which he executive produced along with Quincy Jones and Wyclef Jean.

“I am not sure who is luckier, Nicole and Joel to have each other, or me, to have both of them in my life,” he says. “I cannot wait to give away the bride!”

Richie, 28, and Madden, 30, began dating in December 2006 and have daughter Harlow, 2, and son Sparrow, 5 months.