I'm shacked up

Excellent point, OOP.

I refuse to marry someone before I live with them first. I'm not into surprises.

FirstDown, you need to graciously accept the fact that the bathroom is no longer yours. That's my only advice.

 

Neither is the closet. She gets the master closet, plus part of the closet in the other bedroom. I get what's left over.

 

Oh, now that is definitely preparation for married life right there. My wife gets the walk-in and the overflow ends up in my closet, which is much smaller. And I know not to complain, mostly because if I do it will turn into a discussion of the need for me to clean out my closet.

 

One hint for getting things off to a smooth start:

Be sure to give her a schedule for what day(s) you want your laundry done and the place cleaned, what time meals should be prepared, etc.

It shows a lot of thoughtfulness if you can give them advance notice, rather than springing these things on them last minute.

 

What do you think I am, some kind of cretin? I've already done all that and bought her lingerie to wear while she's doing the chores.

 

She does the chores, you handle the money. ;D

 

I'm thinking about getting her a pool table for her birthday. Or a multi-purpose brass pole.

 

Closet space and bathroom-shelf space were the first to disappear once my GF moved in, but she also helped me do triage on the stuff accumulating in my den. That helped reclaim a bunch of squandered space, so I decided to keep Miss PressMurphy awhile longer.

 

You're dating your sister? Dude ...

 

I will have lived with my ball and chain for 15 months before we get married in November, the first three of which were spent in a 650 square foot apartment.

I recommend it, well, not the living in 650 square feet. Hey, after 15 months if you still can get her to giggle at your farts, life is good.

 

I sort of fall into this category. I pretty much lived with Mrs. tbf and her parents for about six months before we got married. Sorry, FDP, but there's nothing you can do now that will insulate you from the shock you get when you marry.

Speaking of closet space, I actually get some of mine back tomorrow. I get my flight suits issued tomorrow, and there's no more room in my closet, thanks to all her shit.

 

Bingo.

Whoever came up with the idea that premarital cohabitation was a BAD thing ... should be shot on sight.

Living with a girlfriend or with a female roommate or with your future wife ... completely changes your perspective on women in general, on yourself and (if applicable) on your relationship.

Why anyone would choose to wait until marriage to find out what it's like to live with the person you think you want to spend the rest of your life with ... I'll never understand. Makes me wonder what other red flags that person is avoiding until they have no other choice. (And that's not judging anyone who does it, it's just saying that the "sinful" guilt trip shouldn't scare anyone away from something as important as how you get along when you live together.)

So, good on you, FDP.