8 Lessons from 365 Days of Marriage

1. The wedding is such a small fish in the sea of marriage. I can’t stress this enough. If we could do it over again we’d probably spend more time in marriage counseling (we did none) and less time on flower arrangements.

2. Your marriage won’t be perfect because you’re not perfect. Enough. Said.

3. Being married is hard. Like really hard sometimes. Two different people living together and sharing finances, goals and chores. Does this sound like a recipe for success? Everything is so much more intense knowing you’ve tied yourself to this person (legally, publicly, spiritually).

4. Being married is awesome. Everything is so much more intense knowing you’ve tied yourself to this person (legally, publicly, spiritually). Yes, the (non-final) finality of marriage makes things better, too. We know that little fights can’t rock us and there’s a certain warmth to knowing I’ll always wake up to the same person.

5. You will learn your faults. From little habits to detrimental tendencies, the daily grind will expose your worst. And we’re talking about more than just your morning face.

6. You will figure it out. Nobody gave us a guide book for marriage. Still, we figured out what being a wife looks like for me and being a husband looks like for him.

7. There will be highs and there will be lows. We have times where the growing pains are strong and times where we’re flying high. Remember the rough patches will only make you stronger together.

8. You still have to work at it. This has been a huge lesson for us. It was easy to get wrapped up in life and feel comfortable… but we still need romance and surprises to keep the spark alive.

Side notes:

Don’t listen to anything I say. I’m an imperfect wife (see #2) and I’m still working at it (#8).

A friend shared a book with me that has changed the way we communicate and show love. I recommend Love & Respect to anyone and everyone wanting stronger relationships.

What would you add to this list?

Tagged as: family, wedding