“It was always you.”

Jim and Pam; Ross and Rachel; David and Patrick; Hannah and Garrett. If there’s anything I’ve learned from sitcoms and scripted series, there’s nothing simple about love and living happily ever after. 

If I’ve learned anything, romance isn’t flowers being brought to you every day after work. It’s not chocolate and champagne on the bed. Love is messy and complicated, but it’s so amazing. Love is working through furloughs, paying bills, interacting with each others’ families and deaths. But it’s also babies, it’s celebrations and knowing you’ve found the one who makes the hard days easier. 

Before Garrett and I knew we wanted to marry each other, it was the most difficult set of challenges that I didn’t know I was going to have to experience. Here’s how I knew he was the one and how you might learn you’re with your forever as well. 

To-Do Lists Became Fun: Going to get groceries, visiting the dentists and vet and cleaning the bedroom became enjoyable. Isn’t that sad? Except it’s not! The average and mundane became easily passed and taken care of…sometimes, it was even exciting. 

They’re Your Emergency Contact: From airport pick-ups, flat tires and bad days at work, I never had to think twice about asking for G to help me. I trust his advice implicitly and he knows exactly how to act and behave to reassure me and vice versa. 

Engage and then Re-engage: One of the most satisfactory parts of my day is when I get to hear how G’s day was. He’s one of the good ones and I love hearing everything about his day as well as sharing with him about mine. 

I’m Always Laughing: Garrett is my best friend and I never stop laughing when I’m with him. I can be as serious as ever when I’m with him, but then also be super silly. We find a joke in everything that we talk about and there’s always some lightheartedness in the day. He truly brings out the most fun in me. 

Let’s Talk Money, Honey: I hate talking about money, I mean, I truly loathe it. But, I trust G enough to talk to him about the reality of such a tough topic – whether it’s my student loans, being furloughed or having to go halvsies on trips and dinner. We’ve worked through and built up enough understanding to have the same core values on finances and it helps bring relief to know that we can work through it during each life obstacle.

PDA is Less Sexy, but so Good: We’ve never been the type to make out in front of people and, at most, we simply hold hands. We’ve never felt the need to write long, gushy captions on social feeds to profess and showcase our love. As time has passed, we share more eye rolls, smirks and hand-holding. We love to tease each other and hug around the corner. Life is just much more light and feels incredibly authentic.

I Always Want Him Here: Whether I’m throwing up sick, having an anxiety attack or crying out of frustration, I’m not embarrassed if he sees me like that. I always feel more comforted with G around me. Always.

Of course I want G around for all of the good times as well – there’s truly no one I’d rather spend my life with. He takes me for everything I am, at my best and at my worst. We’ve worked through the worst of times and celebrated the best of times and for that, I know I’ve found the one and that makes it feel like a damn fairytale.