3 months...

Well yesterday, Matt & I celebrated *(ok we really didn't do anything, but we said happy anniversary!) three months of marriage. This three month journey has really seemed like so much longer than three measly little months. We have been through far more in three short months, ninety-some-odd days, than I anticipated, and here is what I have learned:

• I really love to cook. Prior to this, I knew I liked to bake, but cooking was a realm I never really conquered before. And I love it. :) Not only do I love it, but I am good at it!
• Marriage is hard! I went in to marriage with every preconceived ideal that anyone could ever have and it hurt me. Because marriage is work! It is the very best kind of work, but it is hard! 
• Marriage is the most intense act of selflessness I have ever engaged in. I'm sure having a child will bring me to another whole level but for now, this step in marriage has been huge! I am not trying to toot my own horn by explaining all of the ways I have served Matt, but it is definitely a huge act of putting him first, in every situation and I have learned the hard way in some situations, but I am so much better for it. 
• There is no I in team. corny. true. believe it.
• Waiting to have sex until marriage, for me, was totally and completely worth it. At work, a few of my Christian unmarried friends have recently asked me if I am glad I waited til marriage and the answer is o.m.g. yes. Before June 12, I always secretly wondered if I would wake up June 13 and regret waiting. nope. To go along with that, sex is vital to the well-being of a relationship. I will be vulnerable *(as I usually always am on my blog) and share that there have been a few days where we have not been intimate and I can always tell in our attitudes toward one another.

If you are married, stop reading this and go have sex with your husband. 

• Oh, and another thing...another single friend of mine who is remaining a virgin until marriage asked me last week if, on our wedding night, I felt guilty for the sexual acts I engaged in (and this was a question I asked my married friends & had great concern about) and the answer? not. at. all. Being able to see his wedding ring on his finger and seeing mine and flashing back to moments of our marriage ceremony helped me but there were no feelings of guilt and I felt God was blessing our marriage bed. Anyways, enough of that...

• Weekly dates are so vital.
• I am not a morning person. 
• Now that I am in my own apartment, I really like/need to keep things super clean. Growing up, my mom always freaked out on me when clothes were on the floor or my bathroom wasn't clean. Now I get it. It drives me nuts. I love waking up in the morning to a tidy house with no dishes in the sink and I love crawling in to bed having to fold back the covers and take off the decorative pillows.
• I have to beat my body in to submission, as 1 Corinthians 9 says. Generally, I want to lay on the couch rather than doing that extra load of laundry, going to the gym, etc. etc. etc. and I can't tell you how many times a day I quote this verse: No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. (1 Cor. 9:12)
• I do NOT do finances. and I am SO thankful that my husband does. Praise Jesus for a husband who checks our bank accounts twelve times a day. 
• I am stronger than I think I am. The past week, I have dealt with a dead car battery and a blown out tire on the highway on the way to california. And I'm still alive. Thus, I am stronger than I think I am. 
• Pre-Marital counseling is SO worth it. Take the time, energy and effort, if you are not married, and go see a regular counselor. Sets you up for success. Matt & I didn't do as much as I wished we had but it is a jewel.
• Some days, I have to CHOOSE to love Matt. Love is a choice. So cliche, I know. But seriously, so true.

Anyways, these are just a few of the things I have learned on my short journey thus far. If you are single, live up your single life! love it! embrace it! because it is such a gift! I am so fond of my single years with roommates and girls nights and all the beauty that comes along with it...