I was a late-bloomer and didn't begin dating until I was out of college. Throughout my teens and twenties, I collected advice from the likes of John Gottman and Leo Buscalgia, as my parents must have been under the impression that if they didn't mention dating, it would never happen. I was once a die-hard... Continue Reading →
The Day It Snowed in Phoenix
Within the first few months of dating, my boyfriend and I were discussing growing up in Valley of the Sun, when I happened to mention the magical day in December 1998 when it snowed in downtown Phoenix. I had just exited the Children's Theater with my family and was running up and down the steps... Continue Reading →
Getting Married Isn’t The Finish Line
For the last nine years, my partner and I have talked about, one day, being married. The idea is a simple, low-cost backyard ceremony with just our parents. I can wear wedding dress that's been worn by numerous generations in my family. My to-be husband can place his grandmother's modest ring on my finger. And... Continue Reading →
Choose A Man That Would Save A Fly
When I was in my early teens, my mom told me that how a young man treats his mother and service staff can serve as an indicator for how he will treat his partner. The gist was, when I was ready to start dating, I should seek out a kind and respectful man. Eventually, I... Continue Reading →
The Gift Of Love
You will fall in love. You will see the best of that person. You will see them at their worst. And you will decide that you want both. You will let that love burn and melt away the walls you have built up around your heart. You will rediscover its warmth, its comfort. Love is... Continue Reading →
Should We Host a Nonlegal Micro Wedding?
Recently, I have been reminiscing about old friends that I have fallen out of contact with since leaving social media. After a few quick internet searches, I discovered that several happily married mommies had fallen in love, gotten married, had a child, then gone through a divorce, and won sole custody of the toddler, all... Continue Reading →
7 Valuable Lessons From My 7-Year Relationship
Later this month, I will celebrate seven years with the love of my life. If feels like just last month I was nervously chatting with him on the phone for the first time. As with life in general, our time together has been filled with challenges, shared victories, and everything in between. What has remained... Continue Reading →
It’s Not About the Wedding
Last week, the while-haired woman behind us at Costco noticed a bag of macadamia nuts in our cart and gasped, asking where I'd found them. My boyfriend immediately offered to go grab her a bag and I smiled to myself, still proud of my catch six years in. Once I'd checked out, I explained to... Continue Reading →
Two Simple Secrets to Lasting Love
A dear friend is trudging through the perilous minefield that this mid-life dating and spills over with emotion every time we meet. The tears, laughter and longing are always followed by a smile and the phrase, “You two give me hope.” After spending over 2,000 days attached at the hip, my boyfriend and I are... Continue Reading →
Love is Not a Competition
At the start of the year, my boyfriend proposed an idea to save some extra fun money. Each time either of receive a $5 bill, we drop it into a glass mason jar. Less than three months in, we've collected over $500. Out of one hundred $5 bills, I've contributed approximately five. Each evening, we... Continue Reading →
10 Posts on Everyday Love From a V-Day Hater
Today, my boyfriend and I will exchange cards in honor of Female Love Reassurance and Gift Exchange Day and then call it good. Both of us view February 14th as a grossly over-commercialized holiday, yet we both appreciate a good card. At some point today, my sweetheart will open a little miracle card that reads, "I... Continue Reading →
In Sickness and In Health
There is a nasty bug traveling around in my neck of the woods and, for the first time in several years, I caught it. After twelve days of soothing my fever, snot, and persistent irritability, my boyfriend began began developing symptoms. Oops. We were both gifted the full post-Christmas shebang: fever, chills, sneezing, cough, sinus... Continue Reading →
5 Valuable Lessons From My 5-Year Relationship
Later this month, I will celebrate five years with my better half. Oh, how the time flies! Our time together has been filled with the predictably unpredictable ups and downs, as well as plenty of surprises along the way. Through it all, one thing has held true: we are equally committed to ourselves, our partner,... Continue Reading →
Planned Spontaneity
When my boyfriend and I first began dating, it quickly became clear that while I preferred schedules, he enjoyed going with the flow. A perfect example of this was when, just a month into our relationship, he proposed that we do something spontaneous so I could experience the uncertainty and excitement of a blank to-do... Continue Reading →
A Love Letter To Myself (And To You)
In my early twenties, I developed the habit of drafting up little love notes on particularly lonely days, leaving them tucked inside library books and waiting on park benches. I never stuck around long enough to see the recipients, but I always felt so much happier and more connected after my secretive love bombs. Maybe... Continue Reading →
You must be logged in to post a comment.