11 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Said "I DO"

For my third article for www.startmarriageright.com I decided to write about the things that I've learned since being married.

{play me}

{if those aren't some nervous smiles I don't know what is}

James and I married really young (I was 21 and he was 22). I don't think that had any huge impact on our marriage, but the fact was we were the first of our close friends to tie the knot. We just didn't have a lot of people giving us advice about the nitty gritty. I'll condense the list down here for you but I would LOVE for you to check out the article over there too!

1. Your spouse might drool, snore, or steal the covers.
It's true. It might not be "fun" to sleep next to somebody who snores. I've even been elbowed in the face a couple times. It's just part of marriage.

2. Your wife will become moody for no apparent reason.
It happens every month. Even after 7 years of marriage and 3 births, I can't seem to get my emotions under control!

3. Sex may not be that much fun on your honeymoon. 
(Especially for the couples who have been abstaining) I had a lot of ideas of grandeur about what our honeymoon would look like and physically it just wasn't the fairy tail I thought about.

4. Sex gets better with time.
The better your bond becomes and the more comfortable you become with each other, the better that translates in the bedroom.

5. Your spouse will be super annoying. 
Always. They will always get on your nerves.

6. You can get pregnant quickly.
Wish I knew that I was going to get pregnant just 6 months after our wedding day.

7. You will have different opinions. 
Even though we agree 90% of our marriage, it's always a battle when we disagree about something. But it's bound to happen, learning to cope with conflict is vital for a healthy life together.

8. You WILL change with time. 
Change is good. It happens sometimes slowly, and other times quickly. It happens when you have kids. But as long as you are changing together, your relationship will grow with it!

9. You will not know everything about each other.
I am still surprised to learn knew things about the man I live with. It's like a little golden nugget of information!

10. You will fall in love more each day. 
Cliche, I know. But it's true.

Here's the bonus my hubby had to add!
11. Priorities matter. 
Putting Christ first in your marriage will translate directly into your relationship. When you have Jesus first in your priority list, it just naturally spills over into marriage and parenting.

So there it is. What is something that surprised you about marriage? I'd love to hear!