Thomas Rhett refused to "give up" on his marriage during tough times.
Thomas Rhett and Lauren Akins have been married since 2012
The 34-year-old singer tied the knot with Lauren Akins in 2012 and adopted Willa, right, from Uganda around the time they found out she was pregnant with Ada, seven, and while they were both "internally imploding" as he tried to manage his career at the same time, it never occurred to them to throw in the towel.
He told UsWeekly: "We were becoming famous at arguably the hardest moment in our personal lives. Adopting [Willa Gray] and getting pregnant at the same time while having to be in Uganda for a year with me traveling back and forth was so challenging. I’d go to Uganda and be husband and dad, and then go to America and be like, 'OK, shows and music'. I was internally imploding, and so was Lauren. We’d both come to these breaking points [feeling like] something has to give. It was not a fun time in our marriage.
"Giving up was not an option. That thought has never crossed my mind or Lauren’s. With me being a fixer and Lauren being stubborn, we made it work. The easiest thing to do is quit. But when you don’t and you keep grinding it out, you’ll inevitably become stronger."
The 'Overdrive' hitmaker - who also has Lennon, four, and two-year-old Lillie with Lauren - noted that he is actually "so grateful" for the challenging times and likes to use his platform to remind others that a relationship is filled with ups and downs.
He said: "I’m so grateful we had to go through that because now we have a full bag of tools to use the next time something hard [happens].
"One of my favorite things to do is talk about how hard marriage can be and how hard it is to be a dad and raise children to be good people. There are days that are easier than others and moments of pure joy, and there’s a lot of days that suck."
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