There’s this new trend on social media where people are posting pictures and talking about the beginning of their relationship versus how the relationship is currently. I’m a sucker for cute love stories and happen to love my own very much, so I thought I’d share it here on the blog as well as introduce my husband.

Meet Timmy P! He’s a music engineer/ music and vocal producer but by day he works in IT. He’s also a videographer/photographer, 1/2 of Vision Suite Media which is our production company together. He’s a jack of all trades but a master of many as his attention to detail is impeccable. He’s also the guy behind all of the photos you see here on my website and blog!

We’ve been together for 10 years and married for 6, however we met in high school over a decade ago. One day I’ll take you through our history, but not today on this post.

As a millennial couple we work hard to not to fit into the negative stereotypes of young marriages. Every marriage has it’s issues, but for us, we don’t necessarily live in the thought of marriage being extremely hard work. Yes, it can be challenging, but it doesn’t feel like “hard work”. I say this not to brag on my marriage, because like I mentioned, marriage can be challenging and I have no clue what the future may have in store for us, but our unique outlook on marriage thus far has made the majority of the 10 years together/ 6 years married feel like a never-ending honeymoon stage.

When we first started, it felt like we had just emerged out of one of the biggest struggles of our lives. About a year before we started to officially date, our “talking stage” was cut very short when we were forced to be friends during the arrival of his first born. If I were to call any part of our relationship hard, it would definitely be at this part of the story… *Alexa play Erykah Badu “Next Lifetime”*

This time period however was the biggest blessing of our relationship and really set the foundation to what we have today which is true friendship. Because we were only allowed to be friends, we created this platonic affinity for one another, a special bond through this divine connection. Our connection became much deeper than feelings of romance or attraction. When we both look back on this time, there are sometimes feelings of regret in how we navigated some of the hurdles, however all of what transpired turned out to be more intentional than we had realized at the time. Looking back at how we started truly makes me 1000 times more grateful for the love and family that we are curating together today, which takes us to how it’s going…

With pure friendship and faith in each other we’ve been able to spend the majority of our days together in peace and love no matter what the outside world looks like. I’m not claiming to have the perfect marriage, but I wouldn’t trade anything for THIS friendship, THIS marriage, and THIS connection. What’s been interesting is that as we’ve gotten older in our marriage, we’ve become more in-tune with who we are as individuals mostly. We allow each other space to grow and we invite each other daily to be the most authentic and vulnerable versions of ourselves.

The makings of a great millennial marriage (or marriage in general for that matter) in my humble opinion is more than just clear and effective communication and compromise. It’s also in the intentional friendship that you develop and your willingness to become more and more of the realest and best versions of yourselves as individuals for the sake of your sacred union. Everyday I am thankful to wake up to peace in my heart and my soul.

Millennial marriages get a bad rep in that many people debate often how our relationships don’t last as long as our parents and grandparents. I don’t take on any of that fight in a way where I feel obligated to prove to people otherwise, however I am proud to be an example of the ones that’s keeping black love and families alive. I’m also proud of the fact that we are surrounded by other thriving millennial couples that have the same interest in having a solid, happy marriage.

If you’re a millennial, single or in a relationship, I’m interested in hearing your opinion on millennial relationships. Do you think that some millennials have what it takes to keep the black family unit alive and well or do you feel like it’s not really possible. Comment below or send me a direct message through email. I look forward to engaging in this dialogue.

Thanks for reading!!!