Michael and I had never read a book together. Avid readers, we discuss our reads often over short conversations that truly take no effort. He reads about real estate and jujitsu, I read about jewelry and the church... At the end of the day our reading discussions are short and lacking in details; but not this one. Cheers to Eternity is everything Al Carraway promised, and more. Written in collaboration with her husband Ben, this thoughtful study on the day-to-day perks of married life is an honest look into the life of this young couple. As they say in the intro:
This is a compilation of the funny, the hard and the embarrassing: the things that make what we personally have fun, functional and amazing...We know that no two marriages are the same. Our goal is to be genuine and just keep it real. We hope that what we learned can help you (whether you're single or newlywed) really make the most of this life!
Michael and I have been together for almost three years, but have known from the start that we are meant for each other. Dark and hurtful circumstances brought us together and we saved each other from what seemed to be dead ends. So, when I heard that the Carraways were publishing a book, me, being a fan of her first publication, More than the Tattooed Mormon; I wasted no time and quickly let Michael know that we would be reading it together, no matter how long it took. Well, I shot myself on the foot with that one, because, amidst all of life's distractions it took us nearly 9 months to finish it! But, we did, and what a blessing!
Al and Ben are so approachable in their conversation-style of writing. It's like sitting across from them in the living room, talking about work, goals, struggles, God... There wasn't a single reading session where we didn't smile or ponder. At no point did we intend to compare ourselves, but we studied each section closely, carefully analyzing how each piece of advice could apply to us and hopefully help us be better people for each other. This is not a self-help book, but boy does it help! It helped me prove to Michael that communication IS the most important thing. It helped Michael prove to me that I shouldn't take things too seriously. It helped us both see how a young couple with similar challenges as us, can find the answers together, as a team, with a singular goal in mind and always taking into account what the other one wants and feels. It seems simple, but in this day and age, with such fast-paced life styles, it is not always easy to sit back and actually enjoy life as a couple and as a family.
To me, the most priceless take-away is to do life together. Once I start working on projects without involving Michael first, we are thrown off-balance. I have found that managing our schedules together, taking into account what the other wants and needs to do for work and leisure, it just works! Cheering on each other for every little thing; praying together for goals not-yet reached, being thankful for every blessing we receive, and simply loving and caring for each other with kindness and respect... those are the things that I treasure most. It's so refreshing to see that we are doing it right, according to this awesome book! I just can't wait to spend eternity with my best-est friend. Cheers to that!
*Find Cheers to Eternity here and More than the Tattoed Mormon here
*Find lemon towel from background here
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