Preparing My Heart

The past eight months have been a whirlwind of change in my life. Getting engaged, graduating college, and entering into the big girl world have been a little more than crazy! 2014 signals the start of the planning season for my 2015 wedding {18 months, eek!}. I'm more than thankful to not be rushed, and would definitely encourage others to take their time and enjoy their relationships--no matter what stage you're in! I've been able to enjoy all of these significant firsts, with my significant other, but without the additional stress of planning and executing a wedding at the same time. Hopefully, planning a wedding over a year away will also aid in lowering my stress level too!

     With my "fancee" in pharmacy school, and the personal stress and distractions of my own life throughout the past few months, we've not had a lot of time to focus on each other and our relationship. With Christmas approaching, the importance of relationships has been re-emphasized in my life. Throughout December, I am making it a point to reconnect with those most important to me. I realized that even if I talk with some one every day, I sometimes don't feel totally connected to them, and that is something that is so important to me. I want to take time to be a better friend, daughter, sister, and "fancee" and to fill those relationships with love, joy, and fun!

     All this being said, I want to be prepared for the new year, and a new position in life {Type A: Must have a Plan}. The fancee and I have decided to work through the book "The Five Love Languages" by Dr. Gary Chapman. We both have different love languages, and it's really helping us to read more about how each love language is different and to realize how it affects each other differently.

     I've also started reading "Things I Wish I'd Known Before We Got Married" on my Kindle app on the iPad and it's a great piece to follow up and go alongside the love languages book. 

     The other night on Pinterest, I saw a Bible study from a blogger that she did the 12 days before she was married as a way to prepare her heart for marriage and to discover more about the Bible's truths about a couple's relationships. I decided to work through these passages from now until Christmas {a little more than 12 days, but still!} in hopes to prepare my heart to better love those around me. 

Thanks, Nicole at Bloom, for the inspiration! Picture found here.

      I'm definitely planning on doing this Bible study and reading these books over and over again until the wedding to help keep me focused away from the stress of detail and on the "heart" of the event at hand! 

How did {and do...as it's a never ending process!} you prepare your heart for marriage? Do you have any advice for "soon-to-be's" or newlyweds?