24 MARRIAGE LESSONS WE’VE LEARNED OVER THE LAST 24 YEARS

These are the marriage lessons we’ve learned over the last 24 years of marriage.

That’s 1,251 weeks, 8,760 days or 12,614,400 minutes! This is how long we have gone to bed together and woken up next to each other since we said “I do”.

In that time we’ve moved 14 times in 3 difference states while raising 2 amazing kids. We’ve hugged each other while watching the sunset, lost a child, overcome a pornography addiction, made it through the great recession and kissed more times than we can count.

Over those years we have made love in many different places and positions, laughed at our jokes and at one another, cried during happy times and sad times, gone through the ringer and much more.

We met 2 years before we got married, and like many couples we were in dating bliss. Everything was wonderful, rosy, and we were a perfect match. Marriage would have been a breeze if it was like our dating years.

Unfortunately, it hasn’t been. If our marriage was easy, we would have something very abnormal.

We share the toughest times in our marriage in one of the earliest ONE Extraordinary Marriage Show podcast episode to let you know that it hasn’t all been wedded bliss. But, even though it has been rough and bumpy at times, there is lots that we’ve learned from our successes and our failures along the way.

Having experienced a lot in our own marriage we though it would be a good time for us to sit down and go over all the marriage lessons we have learned. One evening, after the kids were in bed, we sat at our kitchen table reminiscing about the years that have since passed. What a fun time we had!

We laughed, cringed, and went deep into our memory banks to remember some of the early years.

Following that special conversation, we knew we had to share the key marriage lessons we’ve learned since that amazing October day in 1996.

1. It’s OK to go to bed angry

There are times when nothing good is going to be said after arguing for what seems likes hours. In these instances, we have gone to bed angry and upset at each other with the understanding that in the morning, once we have cooled off, we’ll talk.

This has saved us from hours of frustration and allowed us to calm down and look at the argument from a different perspective after a night of sleep.

2. Participating in an activity together will bring you closer together

For the first 2 years of our marriage, we didn’t have any activities/hobbies we did together. There was not a connection between us in this area, but we decided to find an activity and discovered a love of hiking and backpacking

This gave us some common goals to pursue together. We hiked to the tops of the 3 highest peaks in Southern California, Yosemite, Sequoia and many other areas.

Now with 2 kids and many more obligations on our plate, we don’t get out as much for our hikes. What we do instead is go out on walk & talks. This is our time to share what’s on our minds, cheer each other on and encourage one another.

3. Set up boundaries with family, friends and kids (if you have them)

It took us some years to realize that we needed to have boundaries around our marriage. Each of us wanted to know that we were being protected and cherished in the marriage. If there are outside influences in your marriage, this is a must-do. When we learned this marriage lesson there was a shift that happened. We now knew we were on the same team as a married couple.

4. Turn off the TV, phone(s), iPad, computers and all other electronics

We just want to be heard. When there are too many distractions, we feel like we are not connecting. When it’s time to talk we’ve learned that everything needs to be turned off and we need to focus our full attention on each other.

5. Romance is not dead

Both of us love being told that we are the only one. These can be with love notes, text messages, phone calls, flowers, small homemade crafts, long hugs, passionate kisses, and many other ways.

It is something that has to be often as each of us wants to know that we are special. We had to define romance and once we did it was easier for us to understand that in just a few minutes a day, we could have the romance we desired.

6. Continue to pursue

Think back to when you were dating. We did everything we could to get each others attention and keep it.

Over the years, the marriage lesson we have learned is that we need to continuously pursue each other like we did many years ago. Making this happen in the bedroom has been a huge benefit to our sexual intimacy.

7. There’s no shame in saying “I’m Sorry”

The sooner the better. All of us make mistakes and the sooner we realize that we’ve done a wrong and ask for forgiveness the quicker we can move forward. Many of us just want our spouse to acknowledge that we have been hurt.

8. Get out of your comfort zone

Change up what you are doing from time to time. In our 24 years of marriage there have been times when we went to the same restaurant each week for date night, walked the same route when exercising, had the same clothes for way too long, and made love in the same position for what seemed like eons.

To get out of the comfort zone we’ve picked up books like this or picked up a fun item for the bedroom like this one to help us break free of these routines. Both have helped us grow in our marriage.

9. Turn the lights on

Everywhere we go the lights are on, except in the bedroom while making love. Thirteen years after getting married we started to leave the lights on – they were on a dimmer switch.

Wow! What an amazing experience to be able to look at each other as we connected sexually. We even keep our eyes open. Oh yeah!

10. There’s a lot of room in a king size bed

It’s easy to be in the same house or even the same bed and never connect. We yearn for physical affection.

We make cuddling, spooning, hugging and physical touch an important part of our time together. These are loving touches that lead to nothing other than our physical bodies being close.

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11. Friends of the opposite sex is a no go

This doesn’t mean we can’t have friends of the opposite sex. It’s that we cannot and do not confide in the opposite sex when it comes to our marriage. It’s a non-negotiable and a marriage lesson we had to learn the hard way.

12. Nothing good happens after two drinks

This was told to us by a friend many years back. Early in our marriage, we didn’t adhere to this rule and many times we would do stupid things that would jeopardize our marriage. An alcoholic drink isn’t worth our marriage.

13. Work will always be there

It’s tough to remember this at times, but tomorrow the sun will rise and the work will be there. We can’t always say that for the love of our life.

14. Kids will change your marriage

Enough said.

We have had our highs and lows as parents. We’re sure to have many more as the years go by, but one thing we have done is to not allow the kids to divide us. If either of us makes a decision on what the kids can or cannot do, then that is the decision. There are times when we have had to have discussions and we do this in private, then come back to the kids with the verdict.

It shows them that we are a united front and that our marriage comes first.

15. Say “I Love You” often and in different ways

Say it often and say it like you mean it. Those 3 words affirm our commitment to each other. There is a need deep inside each of us to know that we are loved by our spouse.

Change up how you say these words by writing it on the bathroom mirror, with rose pedals on the living room floor, hire a singing telegram, in a poem, or any other creative way you can think of to brighten your spouse’s day.

16. Date nights are a must

Dating has rejuvenated our marriage from the brink of despair. Not just going out has been the key, but taking the lead and planning the date has made our dates fun and exciting.

Take a bold step and date your spouse again. There are many ways you can experience the quality time you desire together.

17. Pick up after yourself, your spouse isn’t your maid

When the expectation was on the other spouse to pick up the mess, life in our house wasn’t pretty. Bickering, nagging, and arguing ruled. Neither of us wanted to feel like we were the other ones parent.

We had to grow up in our marriage and take personal accountability for our actions.

18. Just do it

There have been many times during our married years that there were big issues hovering over us. The problem was that we didn’t talk to each other about them.

Our hope was that we could read each others mind and then everything would be just dandy. Unfortunately, neither of us are mind readers, which is a big bummer. Big issues = conversations with one another.

We had to get over our fear of ruining our marriage when we had big discussions and realize that we were only growing and helping our marriage when we did come together and talk. Your palms may get sweaty, your heart may beat faster, but talking about the issues in your marriage is worth it.

19. A hand written note speaks volumes

There is something about finding a note that sings to us. Each of us wants to know that our spouse is thinking about us. The time and effort it takes us is little, and the benefits last a long time.

Here is a great resource on a how to write a romantic love letter to your spouse.

20. It’s OK to be goofy in the bedroom

Loosening up and enjoying one another in our bedroom took time. Not having to be proper and try new positions, even if we began laughing, has been exciting. We don’t take ourselves so seriously and because of this we can experiment from time to time.

21. Sex is so much better without porn

Porn almost destroyed our marriage.

It put images in Tony’s mind that Alisa could never live up to. It made our sex life difficult as Alisa struggled with her own self image and the thought of Tony being with “another woman”. Nothing about it helped us. It was tearing away at our souls and the sex sucked.

Seven years into our marriage, a miracle from God happened – Tony went to Alisa for help. Listen to the entire story: Pornography: A Secret That Can Destroy Your Marriage. It’s taken time to heal from this secret in our marriage, but it has been eight years since Tony has looked at any porn and our sex life is the best that it has ever been. Praise God!

22. A cash flow plan does wonders

Finances is the #1 reason for divorce. We did stupid with too many zeros in the early years of our marriage. Marriage is tough at times and when you add lots of debt on top of that, wow does it feel like a pressure cooker.

Fortunately for us, we got on the same page after a handful of years of marriage and worked our cash flow plan that Dave Ramsey teaches. This one act of obedience started the change in our marriage. We now know what it meant when we said “For better or for worse”. Our attitude changed toward our marriage as we pulled together and united as ONE.

23. Sex Challenges are worth it

The definition of a turning point is, the point at which a very significant change occurs; a decisive moment.

Ours was August 2008, 11 years into our marriage. That is when we decided to attempt our first sex challenge, 60 Days of Sex. Since then we have done a 30 Day Sex Challenge and are the best selling authors of the 7 Days of Sex Challenge: How to Rock Your Sex Life and Your Marriage.

We learned so much about our communication, pleasures, fears, how far we were willing to sacrifice for each other, positions, time management, and the deep love we had for each other. The impact each challenge has on our marriage is different, but each time we do one (we’ve done 13 to date), we grow closer together and become more intertwined.

24: Our vows matter

Our marriage started 24 years ago when we spoke our vows over one another, to “I do’s”, kisses, hugs, laughter, and an amazing evening together. Each day since then has brought us to this point in our lives and marriage. We are more in love now than ever before. It’s taken sacrifice, determination, and love each step of the way.

We hope that you can skyrocket your marriage into the stratosphere by taking these 24 marriage lessons to heart and putting them to good use in your marriage.

Pick up your copy of The 6 Pillars of Intimacy®: The Secret to an Extraordinary Marriage to learn even more ways that you can take your intimacy to a new level.

Love you guys!