moving in.

My ears always perk up when a conversation starts "I started living with my boyfriend..." I am not listening with intent to be nosy. But with the intent of being able to share my story.

During the time my husband and I met we were living in college dorms. We were lucky enough that we lived in the same building. Seeing each other for a quick minute was easy when the person lived a few steps away. We both chose to live off campus our senior year. In a Christian community it was not a surprise. However, in the real world it was mind blowing.

The other day I was listening to a girl talk about how nervous she was about moving in with her (new) boyfriend. I listened for a little while then began to speak up. I told her that I wouldn't do it. I pointed out that nerves are probably not a good thing. If you have a good thing going on now why change it. I finished my two sense with "I know I'm a little different. It was scary living with someone I never had before, but my husband makes a great roommate. I am glad I didn't live with my husband before we got married because we had to keep pursing each other until the day we got married. We had another thing to look forward to." Another girl chimed in and gave reasons against everything I had just explained to her. That's when I left the conversation. But I hope that I got her thinking.

The reality is that not living with your boyfriend before marriage is so uncommon. It makes me SO sad. I do not understand how living with him would be a beneficial thing. I think it gives them more reasons to not commit to marriage or even leave the relationship all together. What happens if you do not live together?

You enjoy the sweet moments of having them over to your house. You enjoy making time to spend at each other's house. You become so different from the world but realize it's working! It's a beautiful thing; seeing the looks on people's faces when you tell them you never lived with your husband until marriage.

I love being able to tell others how my unconventional choice is working. I loved the first few months of trying to figure out how to live with this male. Maybe a little strange but certainly worth waiting for until after marriage.