Kristen Bell is the 2018 host of the SAG Awards and is quite the accomplished actress, first making a name for herself on the television series Veronica Mars. In 2007, Bell began dating actor Dax Shepard, who she met at the birthday party of a mutual friend. In an interview with Good Housekeeping, Shepard said that when he first met Bell, he was suspicious of her “unbridled happiness”, so nothing much came of their first meeting. A couple weeks later, they bumped into each other and Bell said that “it was on” from that point on. For more details on the couple’s quirks, their family and the hurdles they’ve overcome together, read on below.
1. Bell Proposed to Shepard Via Twitter
When the couple got engaged, it was actually Bell who popped the question. She asked Shepard to marry her on Twitter and he accepted. Their engagement was announced in January 2010.
As far as marriage advice for others, Bell shared her secrets to marital success in her life with Flare. She revealed that, “Our main rule is: Check your ego at the door, and be aware of when the other person is spinning out. As artists, everything is vanity- and narcissism- driven: my career, the strategy behind it, the next level I want to hit, my photo shoot, how I was in my acting scene, my premiere. So we try to do a really good job of being human beings in the rest of our life.”
2. They Decided Not to Marry Until California Legalized Same-Sex Marriage
Shepard and Bell got married at the Beverly Hills County Clerk’s Office on October 17, 2013, three years after getting engaged. The reason they waited to get married for three years is because they vowed to only tie the knot when the state of California made same-sex marriage legal. On June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional, according to the NY Times.
In an interview with Pride Source, Bell and her friend Mila Kunis revealed that they both waited to get married until California passed their ruling. Bell explained her reasoning as this: “What are we gonna do? Have a party and be like, ‘Look at us celebrating this thing you can’t do?’ That’s fucking putrid. Like, 90 percent of our friends are gay!” On CBS Morning, Bell dished about the day she got married, revealing that, “We got married in a tiny room in the Beverly Hills courthouse, and it was still one of the best days of my life.”
3. Together They Have Two Children
Kristen Bell and her husband have two daughters together, both born via cesarean (c-section). Their names are Delta and Lincoln. Daughter Lincoln was actually named after both the president and the car, while Delta’s name came from a friend who was joking to Shepard via text. Since having kids, Bell told Good Housekeeping that their dinner parties have changed and that they don’t have as much romantic time together. Bell explained, “You don’t get free time as parents; Dax hasn’t gone to the bathroom solo in three months, because Lincoln is obsessed with him! But other than the sleep deprivation in the beginning and trying to figure out how not to screw your kid up, the rewards are mountains larger than the battles … I yearn for more one-on-one time and romantic outings with my husband, but the kids have added a lot more excitement and a different kind of fun.”
Though Bell says she loves her kids and enjoys being pregnant, she doesn’t want more kids. She joked that she doesn’t want to be outnumbered.
4. They Are In Couples Therapy
Kristen Bell is proud and very open about being in couples counseling with husband Shepard, according to People. Bell explained, “Therapy is not something to be embarrassed about. I used to have a temper … I loved slamming doors – I wanted a dramatic exit! But he, having worked through a variety of emotional issues to get sober, said, ‘This isn’t going to work. This isn’t how I’m going to communicate for the rest of my life.'”
She continued, “When someone doesn’t fight back and goes, ‘I don’t want to do this,’ that threat is real. It makes you reevaluate your behavior. The way Dax and I argue now – and we argue a lot; we disagree on almost everything! – is so healthy.” Shepard also weighed in with his thoughts on the subject, saying, “I said to Kristen, ‘We should try hard to police ourselves about becoming contemptuous of each other. If I ever see you roll your eyes at me, we need to hit pause and figure out what’s going on.'”
5. Shepard Got His Start in Entertainment on Ashton Kutcher’s Show “Punk’d”
Shepard’s breakout role was on Ashton Kutcher’s prank show Punk’d, where celebrities would get tricked or had jokes pulled on them. Some pranks were actually quite serious. This began in 2003 and carried on successfully for years. Even when the show had a short revival in 2012, Shepard returned to appear on the program. Apparently, Kutcher even helped Shepard to get an agent as well.
Shepard went on to be in movies like Employee of the Month and Without a Paddle. In 2010, he landed a lead role on the television series Parenthood.