We're halway there!

A lot of people say the first year of marriage is the hardest of them all...well if that's the case, we're halfway through the tough stuff! Monday was our 6 month anniversary, so I thought I'd mark the occasion with another burst of marital wisdom :)

1 - It's really fun to swap stories with other people who are married: We recently joined a "young marrieds" small group through our church, and it has been a great opportunity to meet new people that are quickly becoming friends. It's also great because it gives us a chance to commiserate/laugh about the common elements of every marriage. Last time we got together, there was a lot of, "wait, your husband does that too?" It's nice to know you're not the only ones!

2 - When it comes to home improvement projects, always measure twice: Last week there was a blizzard in Chicago, so we took the day off to hang curtains in our living room, a task we'd talked about for awhile. We got out the drill, stepladder, and curtain rod brackets and went to work. Alex did a great job getting the curtain rod up, we slide on the curtains, and voila - the curtains are hovering awkwardly 3 inches above the ground. Bummer. So, a short TV watching break later, Alex undid all of his hard work, spackled the old holes, and drilled new ones. Now the curtains look perfect :)

3 - When making a major purchase, know your strengths: We recently made our first big married couple purchase: we bought a car. As we went through the car buying process, we learned a lot about each others' strengths and weaknesses. I loved the planning - I made our budget, looked up tax/fee information, scouted cars, planned our shopping route, etc. But when it came to talking to the sales people, I learned to just sit quietly - Alex is a way better negotiator than me! I got totally flustered, both negotiating and making the final purchase. Thankfully, Alex had the confidence to pull the trigger when the time came and after all that, it was definitely the right decision.

4 - Always take sound Biblical marriage insight to heart: This Sunday at church, we heard a sermon that provided some really great marriage insight. In fact, it was so good, that I think you'd all get something out of it. Watch it here - it's the "Marriage and Intimacy Redefined" lesson with Dan Allender. Don't worry - it's not intimacy in "the Biblical sense", so it's safe for all ages :)

That's all for now - here's to 6 more months of martial bliss!