- Joe Biden's granddaughter Naomi married Peter Neal at the White House on November 19.
- In a Vogue cover story, Jill Biden revealed the marriage advice she gave Naomi before her wedding.
President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden's granddaughter Naomi Biden married Peter Neal at the White House on November 19.
While the wedding itself was closed to the press, Naomi and the first lady spoke with Vogue in the days leading up to the celebration for a cover story published Tuesday.
Naomi shared that her "Nana" was "super involved" in the wedding planning, much of which took place over SoulCycle classes and evening glasses of wine.
"She has really stressed to me that every time I get anxious about wedding stuff to take a breath and remember that it's just a day about Peter and me and being around the people we love," Naomi told the magazine. "She's taught me so much about being independent and self-sufficient. But that doesn't mean you can't also be a selfless and fiercely loyal partner."
Biden also shared the marriage advice she gave her granddaughter: "Maintain your independence."
That advice appears to have worked well for the president and first lady, who have been married for 45 years. It is the second marriage for both. The president lost his first wife and daughter in a 1972 car crash. Jill Biden divorced her first husband after five years and married Joe Biden two years later.
Jill Biden felt "lost" when her first marriage ended, she wrote in her book "Where the Light Enters," explaining they were young and quickly grew apart.
"It was at this point that I learned how essential it is to be financially independent, especially as a woman," she wrote. "My daughter would tell you that I drilled this message into her from an early age."
Jill Biden has a doctorate in education and fulfills her duties as first lady in between the writing classes she teaches at Northern Virginia Community College. Her stamp on the role is groundbreaking as the first president's wife to continue her professional career as first lady.
She wrote that she stresses this message of independence to the women in her class and the young female students that she mentors. "That, and the fact that you can't always prepare for what life brings you," she wrote.