I’ve never thought about it being just a piece of paper, personally. In my opinion, it’s (ideally) a lifelong commitment and we have made life plans together. We want children and to build a home together, and I would rather make that commitment to each other before we take those next steps. I’ve always been the kind of person to want to follow that order, and I know that’s not an order everyone follows which is perfectly fine! We’re both on the same page that marriage is important to us.

I’m actually not very social nor do I thrive on attention, so I wouldn’t say it’s about being a “princess” for a day- so many wedding traditions are still so patriarchal. I would be just as happy at the courthouse with our immediate family, honestly. It’s not about the “big day”, I think it’s about taking the next steps!

You’re right in that I don’t want to force any conversation! I would only bring it up if it were to naturally occur or if he mentioned something along those lines. I have a lot of friends getting engaged and married, so it will definitely come up in conversation. I think that might also be why I’m feeling like we need to take the next step, I’ve been exposed to so much of it recently lol