Mario Lopez pops the question to his girlfriend

(CBS) Mario Lopez proposed to his longtime girlfriend Courtney Mazza over New Year's Eve weekend in Ixtapa, Mexico.

"We took a walk alone as the sun was setting," Lopez, 38, told Us Weekly. "I told Courtney that I wanted the mother of my children to have their last name. She was silent at first from shock, then she leaped for joy and did a little jete!"

The former "Saved by the Bell" star has been dating Mazza, a 28-year-old stage actress, since 2008. The couple, who met while performing in "A Chorus Line" on Broadway, has a 2-year-old daughter named Gia. They plan to exchange vows later this year in Mexico.

Lopez wed Ali Landry in 2004, but they annulled the marriage two weeks later.