5 Things I Learned in the First 5 Years of Marriage

BABY, WE MADE IT!  Not that I thought we wouldn’t, but I do consider 5 years of marriage a pretty big deal.  We have our good days and bad days, but there is no one else that I’d rather spend every single day with for the rest of my life!  Today, May 3, 2019, my husband and I are celebrating 5 years of marriage.  We’ve been together for 8 years and married for 5 years.  Each year, I learn something new. I never want to stop growing and making memories with you.  We are an amazing team from parenting to business to love. I love doing life with you! Happy anniversary my love!

Amanda Sutton Photography

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What I’ve Learned in 5 Years of Marriage

In honor of our 5 year anniversary, I wanted to share what I’ve learned in our first 5 years of marriage.  I’ve learned so much on this journey of life with the hubs.  I pray that we continue to grow with each other in the next 5 years and beyond!

Keep God First

Marriage is sacred so of course, you will want to always keep God first in your marriage.  It’s definitely not something to take lightly.  You know the saying, when we put God first, everything else falls into place. I truly believe this.  God has been there for the most trying times for us.  I pray for my spouse daily and he does the same. We pray together, we read marriage devotionals together, and we speak to God on our own to help us have a better understanding of each other.

If you’re looking for marriage devotionals to read on your own or along with your spouse, Bible.com has some good ones.  You can read them online or you can read them from the Bible.com app from your phone.  You can download the app HERE.

Marriage is Hard Work

Marriage is not all sunshine and roses.  You can’t just glide through marriage.  It takes hard work, patience, love, understanding, and compromise just to name a few.  We are constantly working on our marriage and figuring out what’s working and what’s not working or what we could do better.  NOBODY is perfect.  There is always something you can work on in your marriage from finances to simply just being more thoughtful.  We have to remember that practice makes perfect.  So practicing to listen more or intentionally being present rather than staring at your phone definitely helps in a marriage.  We are willing to put in that work for years to come!

Amanda Sutton Photography

Learn Your Spouse’s Love Language

If you haven’t read the 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman, I suggest you read it ASAP!  Learning your spouse’s love language is a game changer!  It will help you understand your spouse more and even yourself and what you need when it comes to love.  Meagan Good said it best, you can’t just love someone in the way you want to be loved.  It doesn’t work that way.  You have to recognize in what way they want to be loved and speak that love language.  The 5 Love Languages book is very helpful and I definitely recommend it to any couple out there, new or old.

Want to know what your or your spouse’s love language is right now? Click HERE to take the 5 love languages quiz. Read the book next to get a better understanding.  I also just found out that there is a 5 Love Languages app called Love Nudge that is basically like a fitness app for relationships.  Remember earlier I said practices makes perfect right?  Well, this app for couples basically gives you a little nudge to help you take action and stay connected with your spouse.  You can download it HERE.

If you or your spouse aren’t big on reading, you can listen to the audiobook together instead. Currently, you can sign up for a free 30 day trial of Audible and get TWO FREE audiobooks plus TWO Audible original audiobooks for free too! You can cancel at any time. Even if you decide to cancel your Audible membership, your books are yours to keep!

Start your trial now! Just click below to sign up.

Communication is Key

I know “communication is key” is said all the time, but it’s true though!  In 5 years of marriage, I’ve learned that taking the time to communicate just makes life so much easier.  I’m a work in progress, but I am definitely more mindful of actually listening instead of just saying what I have to say.  So many problems can be solved if we just take the time to listen or take a step back and say our words in a more gentle way.  Things can get blown out of proportion so quickly when you don’t communicate properly.  And it’s usually the dumbest things too!  Communication is key, trust me.

 

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Date Your Spouse

We can get so caught up in our day to day lives that we do the same ol’ thing over and over again.  It’s quite easy to do.  I’m learning that you have to work to keep that spark and not get too comfortable.  I definitely don’t want my husband to feel just like a friend I’m living with.  Yes, he’s my best friend, but he’s definitely a lot more than that.  We have to make time to get away from work, our businesses, and even the kids and the dog and just have moments to ourselves like we used to when we first met.  It’s important.  Make time!

Amanda Sutton Photography

Did you know that May is actually date your mate month?  I knew the May of month was bomb!  The hubs and I have actually been having pretty consistent date nights lately and I’m loving it. We both take the time and plan out a date night or even sometimes a weekend to ourselves. I aim for at least once a month, but if we can make it happen more than that we definitely do.  Sometimes we have a date night at home, but I think getting out of the house is important too.

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How long have you been married? What are some things you’ve learned from being married?