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Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard have been married since 2013. Together they have two children.

The beloved Hollywood couple has always made a point of being open and honest about their relationship in interviews and on social media. During a recent interview with Justin Long on his podcast, Life Is Short With Justin Long, Bell spoke about why she and her husband have chosen to be so candid about their marriage.

Dax Shepard and Kristen Bell | Kevork Djansezian/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
Dax Shepard and Kristen Bell | Kevork Djansezian/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

“Something happened with Dax and I early on where we decided we were never going to not be asked about our relationship,” she shared. “So if we were going to talk about it, let’s make sure we show the good, the bad, and the ugly and how we handle it. Let’s not make it saccharin, and we really try hard to not make it saccharin, and we talk about the fact that we do fight, we do go to therapy, we dislike each other a lot sometimes.” 

Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard’s big fight about housework

She also told Long about a fight she recently had with Shepard where they didn’t speak to each other for three days. The fight was about housework.

“In fact, we had this pretty incredible fight recently. Incredible. I mean like top of the lungs screaming,” she said. “It was about things around the house that I felt I needed help with. We have a relationship where you are supposed to be able to say, ‘I need your help with this.’ For those of you listening, I’m telling this from my perspective, he’s not here to defend himself.” 

Bell continued: “I left a note and I was like, ‘Hey dad! Would you mind taking the two towels in the dryer and folding them?’ and then like one other thing. I was like, ‘That’s ten minutes of work,’ I can say that.”

But she learned that Shepard doesn’t appreciate when she leaves him instructional notes.

“He goes, ‘When you leave me notes, I feel really controlled,’ and he launched into how he felt about it,” said The Good Place actress.

“I don’t actually remember what happened, but what transpired was a lot of volume, a lot of harsh words being thrown around, and it was an angry, angry fight about how nobody does anything for anybody else,” she said. “I grabbed my pillow and I stomped down the hall and I sleep in the front room and I’m crying. We don’t talk for three days.”  

Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard’s new dog Frank

So what finally got the couple speaking again? Bell brought home a rescue dog (Frank!)!

“I didn’t get an apology, but I got a dog! This is so much better than an apology. So I bring the dog home, it’s great,” she shared. “We never talked about that fight ever, but I will say this: Every single thing that I have needed done or thought, ‘I’d want help with this,’ since that fight, he has been ahead of. I couldn’t complain about him if I tried right now.”