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Before Sister Wives star Janelle Brown was married to Kody Brown, she was married to Meri Brown’s brother Adam Barber. However, the mom of six said that, in the end, the marriage “just didn’t take.”
“It was very, very short lived,” Janelle, 55, explained during a guest appearance on the “Real Life With Kate Casey” podcast on Tuesday, November 5.
When Kate joked that “many” people have “starter marriages,” Janelle agreed.
“[It] probably really qualifies as [that],” Janelle replied. “I think we might have lived together physically, actually lived together, for, like, six months.”
Kate also asked Janelle if it was “uncomfortable” when she met Kody, 55, and he was married to her ex-husband’s sister Meri, 53.
“I was not at Meri’s house frequently. I was there occasionally and I just happened to be there one time when Kody came and I was already intrigued with the faith. It represented something that was more dynamic or something that was more robust than the faith I had,” Janelle said. “When I met Kody just in passing, Meri introduced us. I go, ‘Oh.’ I had sort of a feeling. Like, ‘Oh there you are.’”
The reality star didn’t immediately start a relationship with Kody and actually dated other people during the time between her divorce from Adam and her eventual marriage to Kody. Janelle revealed that she actually went on double dates with Meri and Kody at times when she was dating these other men.
“It wasn’t until two years, maybe more, later that [Kody and I] actually married. I knew [Meri and Kody] as friends. I had other relationships and boyfriends. Sometimes we did double date,” Janelle continued. “They were always my token polygamist friends. I was 20. It felt cool to have unique friends.”
Janelle also revealed that she began investigating the religion and “Meri’s mother was a really great resource” for her.
“She was such an amazing woman, so I kind of started to study with her and other ladies that were in the faith,” Janelle shared. “I pretty much had made the decision to join the faith, you know, there’s a lot of prayer involved. There’s a lot of channels you have to go through. It’s a very proper process.”
When Janelle realized that there might be something more with the dad of 18 and decided to pursue things, she described it as a “very old fashioned courtship.”
Janelle’s marriage to Adam wasn’t her only connection to Kody before she officially became one of his wives. Her mother, Sheryl Brown, was married to Kody’s dad, William Winn Brown, until his death in 2013. Kody and Janelle were technically step-siblings, and she opened up about her unusual family tree during an episode of Sister Wives in 2013.
“Before Kody and I were really courting, I was actually friends with his family. My mom was worried I was getting sucked into some polygamous cult. But she ended up meeting Kody’s dad and they ended up falling in love and getting married before Kody and I started courting,” the reality star said.
Kody and Janelle tied the knot in 1993 and welcomed six children together. However, in 2022, Janelle announced her split from Kody.
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