'We've both had phases': 'Secret' to Hollywood couple's marriage

Hilarie Burton has revealed the secret to her marriage to Jeffrey Dean Morgan, whom she has been with for almost 15 years. 

In an interview with E! News, Burton candidly discussed her relationship and family life.

The pair share two children, Augustus, 14 and George, six. 

"Obviously, communication is a very big deal, and also anticipating that your partner is going to go through phases and changes," the One Tree Hill star said. 

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"We both have gone through different professional phases where maybe we're super ambitious in one phase of our life and then we're nesting in another phase of our life.

"And we try to work in tandem so that we're each compensating for each other.

"I'm certainly not the same person I was at 26. Now I'm like a warmer, more aggressive version, and he seems to like that."

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The two actors are about to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary.

 "I'm going to see him next week to celebrate a little bit early," Burton said of their plans. 

"He's travelling for work, and so I'm going to see him for a whirlwind 24 hours and no one should expect to be in touch with us. It's kind of great."

The family live on an upstate New Work fam, which Burton says is their "little sanctuary," before sharing a glimpse into her children's lives.

"My son's taken to riding dirt bikes around the property with my husband, that's cool, and my daughter just wants to get outside and wrestle dogs," she said.

Burton and Morgan, who has starred in The Walking Dead and Grey's Anatomy, began dating in 2009 after being introduced to one another on a blind date by their good friends Jensen and Danneel Ackles. 

Their first son, Augustus, was born the following year and George was welcomed in 2018. 

Despite dating for over a decade, the Hollywood couple didn't tie the knot until October 2019.

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