Following his recent engagement to longtime girlfriend Gwen Stefani, Blake Shelton is taking his job as a stepfather very seriously.

While the country singer doesn’t have any children of his own, he’s more than ready to take on such an important role in the lives of Stefani’s three kids: sons Kingston James McGregor, 14, Zuma Nesta Rock, 12, and Apollo Bowie Flynn, 6, who she shares with ex Gavin Rossdale.

During a recent interview with KFROG’s The Ride with Kimo & Heather, The Voice coach says there’s “definitely nothing easy” about being a stepfather.

“I don‘t know if it’s as hard or harder or not as hard as being an actual, biological parent, you know?” he says. “I have a stepfather in my life who’s one of my heroes. I love my stepfather and I look up to him and he’s like a father to me, so I have a good inspiration in my life for how to do this and the kind of stepdad I want to be. And I take it very serious.”

“But I also have a blast with it, I’m not gonna lie,” Shelton continues. “I don’t take it so serious that I’m not enjoying this time because I really am, especially now that we’re five years into this thing.”

To make matters even more precious, Blake says, “I can‘t imagine my life without these kids now.”

The star’s connection to Gwen’s kids is nothing new, as a source previously told PEOPLE that Shelton actually asked Stefani’s boys for approval before he proposed to their mom.

“Blake told her boys that he wanted to propose and asked their permission,” a source close to the family said at the time. “Her family very much approves of him. He’s an amazing partner and a great extra dad to the boys. Gwen is ecstatic. The proposal was a surprise.”

On an episode of The TODAY Show back in July, Shelton opened up about his role as a stepparent, talking about finding the perfect balance of being both a friend and a role model to the kids.

“That’s a scary moment for me because it’s one thing for me to be with the kids all the time and be their buddy, but you do have to consider after a while that they start to listen to things that you say,” he said. “There’s a lot of responsibility that comes with that.”