The Story of How We Met + My Best Relationship Advice

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and I thought I would share the story of how I met my husband Paul. So first off, I am going to severely date myself by lettting you know that dial-up internet was what brought us together.

Let me start at the beginning.

Paul and I went to high school together and have known each other since grade 9. We both majored in theatre and had a few classes together. I totally had a crush on this tall and athletic being, but nothing truly materialized into a relationship until our senior year – grade 13. Yes! We had grade 13 in Ontario, Canada back when I went to high school and to be honest with you, it was a bit of waste. I was ready to graduate by grade 12. Anyways, back to the story…

So back in grade 13, I was trying to buy tickets to see my favourite Canadian band – SLOAN. I had sought out Paul because I had heard that he had this fancy new technology called ‘high-speed internet’ and since I was slumming it with 28.8 kbps dial-up, I didn’t think I would be able to get tickets in time.

Here we are back in 2000!

Paul helped me get the tickets and ended up going to the concert with me and it was one of those crazy first dates where we talked for hours and just made an incredible connection. We started dating officially after that and have been together for almost 17 years since!

I know most high school couples don’t stay together and I totally get that. We ended up going to different universities, which I think really helped us grow individually and looking back, I’m glad we didn’t stay in the same city and go to the same school. We also lived together before we got married, which means we had lots of time to figure out how we jived as a team when it came to cleaning and finances.

My best relationship advice? You definitely need to have lives as separate people so you can grow on your own and not rely on one sole person for your happiness. It’s the fact that we’re both independent and supportive of each other and is what makes it more interesting when we’re together.

Living together or going on a long vacation with someone really shows you someone’s true colours. Paul and I survived a five-week backpacking trip across Europe and only lost it on the second last day – when we ran out of money, because Paul had been pickpocketed in Paris.

Communication is key. Never have the other person try to GUESS why you’re mad. Tell them, “I’m mad about _____ because it makes me feel _____. Trust me. You’ll feel a million times better and work towards a resolution. You don’t ever want resentment to build, you gotta talk it out because that’s what adulting is all about.

So that’s what I got for you. There’s no one key to a happy marriage, it’s all about being kind, communicating and also being your own person – so you can kick-ass together as a team.

 

Do you have any great relationship advice?

 

 

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

 

 

 

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