Gwyneth Paltrow has called her former husband Chris Martin "brother" in honor of the singer's 41st birthday. The Academy-Award winning actress still considers Martin a member of the family even after four years of separation.

The ex-couple decided to call it quits in 2014 before finalizing their divorce two years later.

"Happy birthday, my brother. Thank you for giving me these two," Paltrow captioned an Instagram photo showing her, Martin, and their two kids together on a Caribbean beach vacation in December.

Long Road To Friendship

In an interview with NBC's Today, Paltrow said that Martin has remained like a brother to him even though they are not in a romantic relationship.

"He's like my brother. I'm really close to him," Paltrow said.

"We're a family. Even though we're not in a romantic relationship, we're a true family and we like to do things to reinforce that we're a family for the children [and] for each other," she added.

Despite what seems to be a happy ending for the Shakespeare in Love actress, she said it was not an easy process. In an interview on Entertainment Tonight, she said that the biggest misconception about her was that things in her life are always convenient.

Paltrow said she is lucky to have a loving ex-husband, who was open-minded enough to develop a friendly relationship.

"It's for the kids. You don't want your kids to suffer," she explained.

Separate Yet Intertwined Lives

Paltrow has two children with Martin named Apple, 13, and Moses, 11. The 45-year-old actress revealed that Martin would still occasionally go on vacations with the family even though both of them have already moved on to different relationships.

Martin is currently dating Fifty Shades of Grey lead star Dakota Johnson, while Paltrow is now engaged with Brad Falchuk, who is known as the co-creator of Glee and American Horror Story.

When asked about Falchuk, Paltrow said that her fiancé's personality thrives well in their household.

"Brad fits in well with the family too, and they are all comfortable together. He is very easygoing and a fun guy," Paltrow said.

On March 1, Paltrow greeted her fiancé a happy birthday on Instagram as she calls him the "epitome of love and kindness."

The mother-of-two said that if she would have to live in a perfect world, she could have stayed married to the father of her children. However, Paltrow said things did not work out in the relationship, so she learned to adapt and finally move on.

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