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After more than 12 years of marriage and countless red carpet appearances together, singer and "American Idol" judge Luke Bryan and his wife, Caroline Boyer, are basically country music royalty. But their relationship hasn't always been smooth sailing: Here's a look back at their decades-long love story, and how they've made it through both good times and bad. A rocky startLuke and Caroline first met in 1998, when they both were attending Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Georgia. He was a senior and she was a freshman, but when he spotted her across the room at a bar one night, he immediately knew that he had to talk to her. "I had to drink a lot before I could go talk to her, but I did," he told Wide Open Country. "It was one of those situations for me, it was like, 'Who is that, and how do I go talk to her?'"Caroline later said on an episode of "Get Real With Caroline Hobby" that she was overwhelmed by Luke at first — she didn't have much relationship experience ("Luke was the second guy I'd ever kissed in my life") and he had a big personality — but his gentlemanly charm eventually won her over, and the two became a couple.Things went smoothly for the pair for about a year and a half, but then, it came time for Luke to graduate. At that point, the two decided to go their separate ways with Caroline continuing to work on her degree at GSU and Luke moving to Nashville to pursue a career in country music.Getting back together Several years and a few serious relationships later, Luke and Caroline finally crossed paths again: The country singer was playing a show in Statesboro on a night that Caroline happened to be in town, so she decided to stop by and watch. The pair was able to spend spent some time together that night, and they exchanged email addresses so they could keep in touch.The rest of their relationship is history: They emailed back and forth for a while and were back together by Christmas, when Caroline invited him to her family holiday party. Luke eventually proposed to Caroline in front of the Nashville Parthenon, and in December 2006, they wed in a remote ceremony in Turks & Caicos.Building a family, and overcoming tragedy Not long after they got married, Caroline learned she was pregnant with her and Luke's first child, and Thomas Boyer Bryan (who goes by "Bo") was born in March 2008. Two years later, the couple welcomed their second son, Tatum Christopher Bryan (aka "Tate").The couple's family didn't stop growing there, however. In 2007, Luke's older sister Kelly died unexpectedly. Just seven years later, her husband (and Luke's brother-in-law), Ben, also died, leaving behind the couple's three children. Luke and Caroline immediately decided to take in their nephew, Til, and nieces Jordan and Kris, turning their family of four into a family of seven."We never thought twice about it," Caroline told Robin Roberts at the time. "You know, it was never something that he and I had to sit down and talk about. 'Should we take this on?' We just did that."One of country music's most endearing couples The early years of Luke and Caroline's relationship weren't always easy: While he chased his dreams of becoming a bona fide country star, Caroline reportedly carried the couple financially with her own career. But they powered through the hard times together and built a beautiful life for themselves and along the way they've become one of country music's most beloved couples.