Marriage Rocks Blog Hop- This Is Us

I'm joining a great group of ladies to share our unique love stories for Valentine's Day.

Hey friends! Today I have a bit of a different posts to share with you! 

7 talented ladies and I are taking a stroll down memory lane and sharing our marriage love stories.

I'm also sharing a fun stay-at-home date night "recipe", plus information on an awesome giveaway so be sure to read until the end!

If you're coming from Decorating Cents, welcome! I'm so glad you're here.

One of the best parts to me of being a teenager in the '90s is the amazing music that era had to offer.

Especially R&B music that was almost always about love.

I truly believed when I was a teenager I would know the moment I meet the "one" LOL.

Needless to say when I met Delandis {'D' for short} it didn't exactly happen the way I heard it in the love songs.

I had no idea he was the "one" {although he totally turned out to be exactly that}.

The Story Of Us

D and I met back in January 2003 when we both worked in a corporate office in Philadephia.

He was the new hire that I was pretending not to notice. At the time I was in the "I'm focusing on myself" phase of my 20's so I was not really looking to date anyone let alone a co-worker.

However, D and I started hanging out a lot as part of a larger group of friendly co-workers. And over time our friendship grew, but we were still mostly just work friends

What happens next is the event that changed the course of our relationship. One weekend my car broke down on my way to New York to hang out with some friends.

Having exhausted everyone on my list that could help me in a timely manner. I called D sheepishly asking for his help.

He didn't even hesitate and came right away.

Long story short we ended up hanging out the rest of the day. Completely losing track of time talking and laughing. It was really one of the best conversations I've ever had up to that point!

He ultimately asked me out on a real date the following weekend and from that point on we were pretty much inseparable.

The thing to this day that I looove about our relationship is that from the very beginning I could just be my full self, flaws and all.

If I wanted to wear a funky t-shirt, a scarf, and sneakers to date he would look me with the same look in his eyes as if I was made up and dressed to the nines.

Around a year and a half into our relationship D got a promotion that required a move to Michigan. This was a defining moment for us because we both agreed a long distance relationship wasn't for us.

So it was either move with him or break up. 

D asked me to move with him and well I took a leap of faith and said yes. It's still one of the best decisions I've ever made. 

However, I made it very clear I wasn't going to displace my whole life to be someone's girlfriend forever. He got the message loud and clear.

We moved to Michigan June of 2005, he proposed in July of 2005 and we got married in September 2005.

Then in November 2005, we went to Hawaii and had a small beach ceremony in addition to our honeymoon. And as the saying goes the rest is history.

Pretty much anyone who knows us wasn't the least bit surprised we didn't have a big ole wedding {although I can't lie I do love a beautiful wedding}. 

We instead purchased our first home that year in Michigan {one of the 8 states we've lived in during our marriage}.

In 2007 our son Jaden was born in Baltimore and in 2009 our daughter Kayla was born in Minnesota. They are truly the two best things that happened to us.

Fast forward we've been married for close to 14 years and our marriage has certainly been tested in that time.

We've lived in 8 different states together {due to D's careeer}. And trust me, moving can definitely test you marriage LOL, so doing it 8 times definetly took its toll.

We've purchased and sold 3 homes. Went through 2 layoffs, 2 high-risk pregnancies, a preemie, chronic medical issues and more.

We often joke we should write a book because boy do we have some stories. If nothing else, our marriage has never been boring.

Despite all of these things though we have always been fortunate enough to learn from {most} of our mistakes and grow together. And I couldn't imagine doing life with anyone else.

What I've Learned...

Looking back I realize one of the things that helped strengthen our relationship, especially early on in our marriage is that it was always just us.

We moved so much and rarely ever lived within driving distance of family and close friends. So if we had a disagreement or something like that, we had no choice but to turn to each other and work it out.

And while I'm not usually in the habit of giving people relationship advice. If I get asked I always share these two things, that has had a very positive effect on our relationship.

1- Find a thing you love to do together {we nerd out hard over here with comic book movies and shows, anime, and the like}.

2- Only share your marriage woes with a trusted few. I've seen first hand how bad it can be for couples when a lot of people have a say in their relationship even when everyone mean well.

Let's Stay In - Date Night At Home

D and I have never been social butterflies. We are both introverts and bonafide homebodies.

Not to mention with moving so much we often had no babysitters for long period of times, forcing us to get creative with making time for each other.

We joke that even in our 20’s we were old and washed hehe. Now that we are almost 40, we’re old pros when it comes to Netflix and chill 😄.

Now having a date night at home doesn’t mean it can’t be both romantic and fun.

One of my favorite at home date ideas is putting together a yummy cheese board that we can graze on while watching a movie or a favorite show after the kids have gone to bed.

Add wine and some romantic lighting and viola you have the perfect romantic date night at home.

Cheese Board Basics

Plus, the cheese board is sooo easy to put together and you can find everything at your local grocery store. Everything I got came from Trader Joe’s and Walmart.

2 - 3 types of cheese - I got Brie, smoked cheddar with chives, and Dubliner cheese {it’s similar to cheddar}.

Veggies - baby carrots, peppers, olives 

Dips - hummus and apple jam to go with the Brie

Meats - turkey pepperoni, spicy salami, sliced turkey rolls

Fruit - grapes and strawberry 

Nuts - We had some honey roasted cashews but you can obviously get any type you like.

Breads - Mini Italian breadsticks, pita chips, and crackers

Something sweet - We had dark chocolate covered almonds and a few pieces of Valentine chocolate.

Arrange everything on a large cutting board or tray and that's pretty much it.

Alright, friends, I hope you enjoyed this little trip down memory lane as much as I did.

Now be sure to head on over to Delightfully Styled to read her love story!

Also, check out the other ladies on the hop, reading these delightful love stories will just warm your heart!

Erin @ Live Pretty On A Penny
Carli @ FW Made By Carli
Mimi @ Unlikely Martha
Andrea @ Decorating Cents
Aria @ Delightfully Styled
Nicole @ She Does A Bunch
Nicole @ Home On Poplar Creek

Now for the giveaway!
We're giving away a $100 gift card to Ruth Chris Steakhouse! The perfect date night spot for when you don't want to Netflix and chill.

Head over to my Instagram page for the all the info on how to enter. You have until the February 7th!