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Gabrielle Union opened up about the simple rule she and her husband Dwyane Wade have to maintain their closeness during their busy schedules
Union and Wade tied the knot in 2014 and share one daughter together as part of their blended family of six
The couple briefly broke up the year before they wed, due to challenges associated with their conflicting schedules
Gabrielle Unionis sharing the secret to her marriage withDwyane Wade.
At the premiere of her new animated filmGoat,the actress spoke with PEOPLE about keeping a balance in her marriage when she and Wade maintain such busy schedules. The pair, who tied the knot in 2014, will celebrate their 12th anniversary later this year.
Wade and Union's key rule to staying close and keeping their relationship strong is simple: "We laugh our asses off. At all times, we laugh," Union tells PEOPLE.
"We just stay connected and we surround ourselves with people who believe in our marriage as much as we do," Union adds.
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Union and Wade, 53 and 44, respectively,first crossed pathsat a Super Bowl party in 2007, though Union later admitted she wasn't exactly interested in Wade at the time. While she was drinking with friends at the celebration, Wade was sober and "on the other side of the room holding bible study," she toldEssence,perE! News. Furthermore, the NBA player was going through a divorce and was nine years younger than Union.
The actress didn't think of giving Wade a chance until two years later, after she went through a difficult breakup. The pair later took their relationship public in the summer of 2010.
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Wade and Union split for a short time early in 2013 due to their conflicting schedules. The couple eventually figured out how to stay close when both are busy, Union says, but at the time of their split, the distance and timing of their schedules briefly drove them apart, perGlamour.
"When Dwyane and I broke up briefly in 2013, it was because of distance and scheduling," Union said, adding, "I missed some quality togetherness we desperately needed … Moving forward, I decided my work schedule has to make sense for our family."
By the end of 2013, the couple had gotten engaged, and on August 30, 2014, Union and Wade tied the knot in an intimate ceremony in Miami. Four years later, Union and Wade welcomed daughter, Kaavia James Union Wade. Union is also a stepmother to Wade's children Zaire, 22,Zaya, 18 and Xavier, 11, bringing their blended family to six.
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Kaavia attended theGoatpremiere alongside Wade and Union, the latter of whom stars in the film as Jett Fillmore, a black leopard. The movie — which also starsCaleb McLaughlin, Nick Kroll,Nicola Coughlan,David Harbor,Stephen Curry,Ayesha Curry,Aaron PierreandJelly Roll— follows a little goat who gets the the chance to join the pros in roarball, "a high-intensity, co-ed, full-contact sport dominated by the fastest, fiercest animals in the world."
Goatdebuts in theaters on Feb. 13.
Read the original article onPeople
