Parenthood's Lauren Graham Finds Relationship with Peter Krause 'So Easy'

Fifteen years ago, Lauren Graham and Peter Krause bonded over board games when the actress first moved to Los Angeles.

Today, Graham 43, and her Parenthood co-star, 45, are diving into something a bit more serious: a relationship.

"One of the things that's been so fun is that it's so easy," Graham says in the October issue of Redbook magazine, which goes on sale Sept. 21. "It's a lot, to work with somebody and spend time with them, too."

Graham, who says she and Krause "clearly had a connection" when they first met, blames timing and shyness for originally keeping them apart.

"I think we liked each other [but] he asked me over to his house to play a board game – and that's exactly what we ended up doing," she says. "So I was like, 'This guy doesn’t like me. Who actually plays a board game?'… The timing wasn't right. I don’t think either of us was ready."

She adds: "He's obviously a very confident, appealing guy, but he's shy, and so am I."

Unlike many Hollywood couples, Graham and Krause have managed to keep their relationship out of the spotlight.

"Nobody knew about it for awhile, because we like to be at home, cooking and not going out," the former Gilmore Girls actress explains. "I've also been really protective of it, because it's important that you can buy us as brother and sister on the show."

Although there is no predicting where Graham's relationship with Krause will lead, she does say she would like to settle down someday.

"I would like to be part of a family, however that looks," she says. "Family is really important to me."

NBC Sets Dates for 'Parenthood'

NBC's long-delayed drama "Parenthood", starring Peter Krause, finally makes it to air on March 1st.

The Peacock also confirmed Monday that its post-NFL Sunday night sked will go all-nonscripted, with the preem of Jerry Seinfeld's "The Marriage Ref" and the return of "Celebrity Apprentice."

Parenthood," originally slated for fall, was pushed to midseason after original star Maura Tierney revealed that she was battling cancer. Tierney's role was eventually filled by Lauren Graham; the show will now air Mondays at 9 p.m., following "Chuck."

Parenthood" will get a strong push during the femme-centric Winter Olympics (don't be surprised if the Peacock cameras spot Graham in the crowd observing the figure skating competish), bowing the night after the Closing Ceremonies.

It will need that promo boost, considering its tough competish. "Parenthood" will face off against ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" -- which likely shares the most similar audience composition -- as well as CBS' mega-hot "Two and a Half Men"/"The Big Bang Theory" comedy combo and Fox's "24."

As previously announced, "Chuck" returns to Mondays on January 11th (after a two-hour preem on Sunday, January 10th). "Heroes," which moves to 9 p.m., airs its season finale on February 8th. The Winter Olympics then take over from February 12th-28th.

On Sundays, NBC has several weeks of specials lined up between that "Chuck" bow and the Olympics -- including the Golden Globes on January 17th and the "AT&T U.S. Figure Skating Championships" on January 24th.

Then, following the Olympics, "The Marriage Ref" bows on Sunday, March 14th, at 8 p.m., following by "Celebrity Apprentice" at 9 p.m. (like last year, "Celebrity Apprentice" airs for a Trump-sized two hours).

The rest of NBC's schedule remains the same. Yes, that means "The Jay Leno Show" still runs at 10 p.m. from Monday through Friday.

Still on the bench: NBC still has six episodes left of "Trauma," which remains on hiatus. Also without airdates are comedy "100 Questions" and limited-run drama "Day One" (both of which saw their order cut back), as well as reality entry "Who Do You Think You Are?"

Maura Tierney Illness Delays NBC's "Parenthood"

NBC's new fall drama series "Parenthood" has been pushed to midseason because of an unspecified illness that has befallen Maura Tierney, one of its stars.

The series, a contemporary reimagining of the 1989 feature, had been scheduled to begin filming July 27th.

The production start has been postponed for eight weeks to late September "due to medical evaluation that (Tierney) is undergoing," NBC said. "We are unable to release further details and ask that you respect her privacy at this time."

"Parenthood" revolves around four siblings (Peter Krause, Tierney, Erika Christensen, Dax Shepard) and their parents (Bonnie Bedelia, Craig T. Nelson).

The series had been slated to premiere September 23rd and run in the 8 p.m. Wednesday hour.

With "Parenthood" pushed, the new drama "Mercy," which was to take over the 8 p.m. Wednesday slot in midseason, will launch in the fall. The cast and crew of the medical drama have been summoned to start work on the series early to have it ready for a September debut.

It was not yet clear whether "Mercy" will air at 8 p.m. Wednesdays as NBC is re-evaluating its fall scheduling plans that now will include the simultaneous launch of two new medical dramas, "Mercy" and "Trauma."

Meanwhile, the delay in production will give "Parenthood" writers more time to work on scripts.

This is the second time filming on "Parenthood" has been put on hold following unfortunate circumstances. In April, production on the pilot was shut down for two days after NBC vp drama Nora O'Brien died unexpectedly on the Berkeley, Calif., set of the show.

Tierney is perhaps best known for her 10-year stint as Dr. Abby Lockhart on "ER," for which she earned an Emmy nomination. She also starred on another NBC series, the comedy "NewsRadio," and has appeared in several features, including "Insomnia" and "Baby Mama."

"Mercy" chronicles the lives of the staff at Mercy Hospital through the eyes of three nurses (Taylor Schilling, Michelle Trachtenberg and Jaime Lee Kirchner).