Luke Bryan and His Wife Caroline Still Laugh About a Certain Wedding Photo

Country music superstar Luke Bryan and his wife Caroline Boyer Bryan are two of the most entertaining figures on social media. The couple is known for sharing their creative family pranks and sweet interactions with their kids through silly pictures and hilarious videos. But behind those fleeting moments on the internet, there's a foundation of mutual love and respect that Luke and Caroline have built over nearly two decades.

"It's all about communication and giving each other time to go do the things that we're passionate about," Bryan told People in 2021.. "But the communication is so critical. When you get your wires crossed ... I know it sounds cliché, but never go to bed mad. You really have to abide by that stuff."

Luke and Caroline have been married for 16 years, so he must know what he's talking about. With that, you might be wondering: how did these two meet? Like most great country music love stories, Luke Bryan and his wife's began in bar. The rest, as they say, is history.

How Did Luke Bryan and Caroline Boyer Meet?

Caroline and Luke's love story began in 1998 at a bar called Dingus Magee's while they were attending Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Ga. Luke was a senior and Caroline was just coming in as a freshman. Luke said it was love at first sight for him. "I had to drink a lot before I could go talk to her, but I did. Somehow I managed to ease over there and somewhat be charming. It was one of those situations for me, it was like, 'Who is that and how do I go talk to her?'" Luke said at a media event.

Though Luke says he instantly told his friends that he and Caroline would marry, he wasn't the one to make the first move. "He was always a gentleman. We hung out as friends first and he never made a move on me," Caroline told People (via CountryFanCast.) "I kissed him first! He was always so scared of making a girl feel uncomfortable, he wouldn't cross a line."

How Many Children Do Luke and Caroline Bryan Have?

The pair hit it off with obvious sparks flying between them, but the romance halted once Luke graduated and started trying to navigate a music career. That's why it took five and a half years for them to meet up again when Luke played a show back in Statesboro. Luckily, Caroline happened to be in town, and the flame started to burn once again as they began emailing back and forth. Caroline invited Luke to her family's Christmas party, and the familial vibes set the pair off on their own journey to create their own family in Nashville.

The college sweethearts married on Dec. 8, 2006, on the island of Turks and Caicos, and built a foundation to welcome their two boys, Thomas Boyer Bryan (Bo), born March 18, 2008, and Tatum Christopher Bryan (Tate), born a couple of years later on August 11, 2010. Bryan's debut album, I'll Stay Me, gave the newlyweds reason to celebrate in 2007.

Then, tragedy struck the family and Luke lost his sister Kelly and brother-in-law Ben. Trying to restore some harmony, Luke and Caroline helped raise the couple's children Tilden (Til), Jordan and Kris.

Luke and Caroline Bryan's Wedding

The couple wed on Dec. 8, 2016 in Turks and Caicos Islands, which is south of the Bahamas. It was an intimate ceremony in front of family and friends. As you might expect from these two, there's some wackiness in their wedding photos. A favorite of Luke's shows the newlyweds walking down the beach while blatantly grabbing each others' butts.

"There's a photo of Caroline and me walking down the beach squeezing each other's butts that we love. It's our same personalities we have today — just so goofy," Luke told People for an article that shows the act in question."Whenever we look at our wedding album, that one always makes us laugh — it was and still is pretty funny. Great memory."

Naturally, the American Idol judge almost ruined the romantic trip with one of his hijinks.

"I tried to windsurf and I threw my back out," he told People. "I had to go to a chiropractor and take a muscle relaxer to stop my back from freaking out!"

What is the Couple Doing Now?

"With boys in my house, I'm constantly on-the-go and cleaning...Luke being the messiest one," Caroline told Country Weekly (via Taste of Country). Though country star Luke now spends his time on as a judge on ABC's American Idol (he's on the judging panel with Katy Perry and Lionel Richie) and performing on stage at massive venues in front of sold-out crowds, Caroline maintains a balance in their home. "I have no aspirations for anything else in the industry," she stated. "My main focus are my kids and seeing Luke as much as possible. Also, I really have no talent anyway."

But Caroline is only being modest when she says she doesn't have a talent for the spotlight. Country music fans have really taken to her. Check any of Caroline's Instagram posts and one will find numerous comments from Luke's fans who would love to befriend her due to her vibrant personality and sense of humor.

From time to time, Caroline will grace the red carpet of the ACM Awards or the CMA Awards alongside Luke—and put up with all his silly antics along the way. She also pops up in his music videos for "Crash My Party," "Huntin', Fishin' And Lovin' Every Day," "One Margarita" and "Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset."

Aside from the fun aspects of fame, Caroline also uses her platform and success as a means to elevate others. In 2017, Caroline's infant niece, Sadie Brett Boyer, was born with Down Syndrome and passed away due to congenital heart disease complications. The child's parents started The Brett Boyer Foundation in which Caroline and Luke support with events like "Bike For Brett." Caroline and Luke also created "Brett's Barn" by renovating a barn on their property to house rescue animals that children with serious illnesses can visit on special days to lift their spirits.

For Caroline's birthday on Dec. 31, 2020, the country singer and his sons, Bo and Tate, and his mom, LeClaire, surprised her with a sweet and funny birthday wake-up call.

"Happy birthday my love. 41 years looking so fine in the mornin," Luke Bryan wrote on Instagram. "I love you to the moon and back. She gets the birthday song." With such a strong inclination towards giving and caring paired with her playful personality, it's easy to see why Luke fell head over heels for Caroline.

This story was first published in 2018.

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