Don’t count out Mackenzie McKee and husband Josh just yet — the Teen Mom OG star says the two have found their way back to each other amid their separation. Josh surprised McKee with a proposal on her birthday, and she said yes.
“We found our way back to each other even when we thought it was impossible,” McKee told PEOPLE. “I fell in love with a new man.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
The reunion comes a few months after the couple announced their split back in August — which was really months after they originally separated. She admits that it took a lot of work before they got to where they are now. She even officially filed for divorce earlier this month.
View this post on Instagram
“Our marriage has always needed fixing. It’s always needed help,” she said, adding that there has been infidelity on both sides. “I had been angry with him for a long time and had never really forgiven him for the past.”
The couple, who wed in 2013 and have been together since 2009, share sons Gannon, 7, and Broncs, 3, and daughter Jaxie Taylor, 5.
McKee, 25, said the breaking point in their marriage came when they realized they were no longer being intimate with each other, rather simply co-existing under the same roof. By the time they decided to separate, she said there was no hope for a reconciliation. “I was done. I was absolutely done,” she said.
But when Josh suggested a marriage counseling retreat, she agreed. The first few days were “awkward,” but she quickly began to understand how seriously Josh was taking their relationship when he started making efforts to better himself personally.
“One day we were walking back to our hotel room after a lesson and he just stopped me and said, ‘I’m ready to give my life to Christ. I really want to be saved,’” the MTV star said. “That is something that I’ve been patiently praying for nine years.”
After that, “I slowly learned to fall in love with someone new,” she said.
Josh planned an extravagant six-hour-long scavenger hunt, which included a stop at McKee’s favorite restaurant, a new outfit, a massage and even a note that told her to throw her old wedding ring into a lake. At the end, Josh presented her with a brand new ring and a private proposal.
“I see this cowboy that I married dressed up in this suit with a rose in his mouth,” she said. “And he was walking towards me and the music starts playing and I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh. I cannot believe this is happening.’”
The two have already chosen the venue and the date for their vow renewal. “I know he loves me more now than he ever has,” she said.
McKee shared an Instagram photo of the moment Josh proposed. “This man…. I will never forget my 25th birthday. 6 hours of opening up clues and going on a scavenger hunt. Even putting on a dress you picked out. I still can’t believe the work God has done,” she captioned the photo. “My ring is beautiful and I choose you over and over. Here’s to new beginnings in Christ.”