How to maintain a good relationship! (my tips!)

Hello beautifuls!
How are you all?

Sorry I didn't update yesterday, I was enjoying the amazing sunshine! =)

This blog was requested by the wonderful LaurenDxoxo =) she commented on my last post and asked could I write about how Carter and I have stayed together so long! =)

Carter and I have been together for almost five years, we've never broke up once, we've never cheated on eachother but we have had our arguements- many of them! But no matter what, we've always sorted things out and became closer.

When we were younger from 12 right up til 16, most people didn't think (and still probably don't) think that our relationship wouldn't last. If I had a dollar for the amount of people who told me that mine and Carter's relationship wouldn't last, I'd be a millionare! The same goes for Carter. - I think because we were so young, people had a lot of judgements on us but we didn't care, we fell back on each other and that's all we needed. "you're too young!" , "I'll give it a week!" , "do your parents even know?!" was the questions we got fired at us every single day.

My mom knew about Carter because he was my cousins friend but she never knew about us dating until I was thirteen, we were dating for 9 months before she found out and same with Carter's parents. We hung out a lot in each others houses but never officially announced it until two weeks after my thirteenth! Reason why I waited so long was because I was scared; scared of my parents reaction when I told them I had a boyfriend- my parents set rules that my siblings and I weren't allowed boyfriends/girlfriends until we were sixteen. Weird but that's how it went. Carter and I talked for three hours that night, I cried to him and was thinking the worst things ever- I thought that my parents would stop me from seeing him, I thought I would never be allowed to have contact with him again. The thought scared me. Carter was with me when I told them, he held my hand and comforted me while I broke down and told my parents. My parents laughed at my reaction, pulling me into a hug and telling me that everything was okay- they trusted Carter, but dad did go thru the whole 'you hurt my daughter and I'll bury you in a forest' talk.. all dad's say that tho, right?

Anyway! Through-out the years, Carter and I have had our moments but we've never done anything extreme that we would regret, the biggest thing that's happened was the silent treatment for three hours which killed me! Don't think that we have some fairytale relationship, 'cause we don't. We are like any other normal couple, we have our up and down moments alot and now I'm pregnant, he's been warned not to take me seriously when I yell at him from my mood-swings.

Our friends(girls) who are in relationships always asks me how we keep our relationship so..loveable so I give them a step-by-step guide!

1. Always talk! Seems stupid but believe me, it works! Many couples don't communicate like they should which results in serious problems. Carter and I make sure we have one hour every day talking about what we did that day.
2. Trust! This is so so so important! Have faith in your partner, trust them and let them know you trust them; by texting or calling them every few minutes is becomes very obvious that you have no trust in them which means you may be saying goodbye to that relationship sooner than you think!
3. Make time for eachother! Many couples don't spend much time together like they should, this is another important point. Carter and I make sure we have one day (either Saturday or Sunday) to spend the whole day together, just us two.
4. Don't say what you don't mean! I can't express how bad this is! I feel like Maury or Jeremy Kyle! Couples say things they don't mean, blaming it on 'the heat of the moment' but in reality, that's only an excuse! Try and process words before saying them, this will save you from later troubles-believe me!
5. Surprise! Most people think that its the guys duty to plan surprises for their girlfriends but its also the girls duty! By planning a surprise for your boyfriend you will gain relationship points! Even if it's just renting out his favourite DVD and laying on the couch, it'll make it worth while!
6. Don't rush! Don't rush into everything 'cause this is one of the serious points people always do first. Couples think that they should rush to keep their partner interested but this isn't true, you should never rush things weather it being meeting your parents or sex.. don't rush!
7. Gifts.. it doesn't need to be big, it can be the tiniest thing but make all the difference! You don't need to spend lots of money, you sometimes don't even need to spend money! Sometimes handcrafted gifts are the more heartfelt ones.

These rules are the ones I live by, they've kept mine and Carter's relationship fresh and strong.. hopefully if any of you girls (or guys!) reading this who may be in a relationship, this will help slightly=)

Again, I loved writing about this topic! I hope that you guys will keep commenting on other topics to cover (anything by the way! It doesn't need to be about me or my relationship, it could be about best friends, socialising, how to be more confident & even beauty and skin care, fashion, etc..) which ever you want, I will talk about! I love covering topics=) oh and if you want to ask me to talk about something, either comment OR email, tweet me etc.. in the contacts forms in the first blog!

love you guys and I hope to update soon=)

stay beautiful
-Katieleigh;xoo