In a few weeks I will be celebrating my 4 year anniversary with my boyfriend. We've been together since I was 16 (he was 17). Young love has always been looked at as puppy love and I understand why. Most young relationships fail by the end of high school or shortly after. I'm thankful we took the time and effort to make ours work.
1. People can't believe you're still together and make judgmental comments.
Like any relationship, people will have doubts. We've heard comments like "Oh, it's just puppy love." or "You're so young. There's plenty of fish in the sea." But look, almost four years later and we're still together!
2. You get surprised looks when you tell people how long you've been together for.
My boyfriend and I have been together for almost 4 years now. When I tell my peers that, I get responses like "Y'all are basically married!" or "Aren't you tired of each other yet?". Actually, no we aren't tired of each other but thanks for asking. *roll eyes*
3. Mi casa es su casa.
We basically live at each other's houses. We don't just spend a few hours together, we spend the whole day or even spend the night. He has his own drawer at my place and I have things at his place. Our parents don't mind having us at each other's houses and we often eat dinner together or do other activities. One day, I came home from work and found my Dad and him drinking a beer together.
4. Fighting happens, but we get over it really fast.
We barely fight and when we do, it's just bickering. We've been together for so long, we just know how to not tick each other off. Fights end up being less than an hour then we realize how silly we're being. Communication is key. We talk everything out and spend a lot of time bettering our relationship.
5. We don't need fancy dates to have fun.
Lately our dates consist of watching UFC fights and eating pizza or wings. We also go hiking or ride our motorcycles in the summer. The fanciest date we have is going to the Melting Pot for yearly anniversaries.
6. Our hobbies rub off on each other.
Ever since I started dating Josh, his hobbies turned into my hobbies. He's taught me how to shoot guns, throw knives, and ride motorcycles. We play video games together and workout together too.
7. We've taken a good amount of mini vacations.
This past year we stayed in an Airbnb in Brooklyn to watch UFC 223 and during fall break, we stayed in a cabin in the mountains. Whether it's going to a concert or going to the beach, we always make time for mini (and affordable) adventures.
8. Monthly anniversaries aren't a thing anymore.
We haven't celebrated a monthly anniversary since our 1 year anniversary. Every once in awhile we joke and point out we've been dating for 3 years and 11 months but it's not a huge deal. Could you imagine making an Instagram post for monthly anniversaries for almost 4 years? How annoying would that be?
9. Holidays are double fun but double the stress.
Celebrating two holidays can be stressful, especially when our family events occur at the same time. We're both used to celebrating with each others families so we make it work. For Thanksgiving and Christmas we often go to his family's celebration first and then mine. It's really nice to have two families. Plus, double the holidays means double the food!
10. You grew up together.
When we started dating, I had acne, braces, and was very insecure. He's seen me at my lowest points and highest points. We've seen each other graduate high school, currently struggling through college, and helping each other discover what careers we want to go into. We've helped each other through times of sadness and helped each other build our self-esteems up. It's really nice to have a constant support system.
We've been through a lot but I wouldn't want to go through it with anyone else.
