7 Things I've Learnt in 7 Years of Marriage

Well, here we are...we've made it to year #7 of marriage. In 7 years, we've: traveled to 8 countries, completed school, changed jobs, bought a house and had two babies. 

In celebration of my 7 year anniversary, to Jesse, here are 7 things I've learnt in 7 years of marriage:

1. We receive love in different ways. My "love language" is quality time. I love to just hang around with Jesse, watch TV, go out to eat, go shopping together or chat before we go to sleep. Jesse, on the other hand, loves when I do something special for him (ex. make his lunch for work).

2.  Pick your battles. Not every battle is worth fighting and not everything needs to be addressed in the same day. 

3. Fight the good fight. In 7 years, we've had many disagreements. It's a normal part of life to have disagreements. We're two people with different opinions, living life in close proximity - fights are going to happen. But I've learnt that our fights don't have to be full blown, yelling, slamming doors, pointing fingers, storming off, silent treatment, type of fights. There are ways to disagree without dishonouring the other person.

4. I can't look to my husband to find my self-worth. I have to be a whole person to meet with another person. Not two fractured people filling in the gaps for each other. 

5. It's ok to ask for help. I used to think that admitting to others that we are having a hard time working through something in our marriage was a sign of weakness, but I've come to realize it is actually a strength. 

6. We both recharge in different ways. Life gets crazy busy - especially with kids - sometimes, we just need to have time to ourselves to recharge. I find that I feel alive again when I spend time with friends or Jesse. Jesse on the other hand, needs to be alone. 

7. "Marriage is a work in progress and you have to work at it to make it progress."

If you're curious to see what we're really like in person, head over to my FB page and check out our live video: 7 Years Q & A (click here). I will warn you, it's live, which means anything could happen.