1. TELL US YOUR SIMPLE LOVE STORY

JD & SD: We first met in early highschool when our families took a joint holiday. We barely spoke the whole trip (Steph: He was too good looking for me to think he would even notice me!) but somehow Josiah’s older siblings knew we were meant to be and teased him about it all weekend! We became close in Year 10 when we played the love interests in our drama class production. As the curtain fell on our final show we looked at each other and knew that we had found the person we were meant to be with. We got engaged in 2015 and married a year later in the Dandenong Ranges surrounded by friends and family. We are also expecting our first baby at the end of this year!

 

2. DESCRIBE ONE WAY YOU EACH INTENTIONALLY GROW YOUR LOVE?

JD: As one of Steph’s more dominant love languages is words of affirmation I always make sure that I am speaking positive and encouraging words over her, affirming her as the amazing, beautiful woman she is and continually becoming.

SD: We started reading marriage resource books at the start of this year. Although we feel like our marriage is a healthy one, we know that we must continually nourish and invest in our marriage for it to stay that way. Two of the best books we have read thus far have be en “Things I Wish I’d Known Before We Got Married” by Gary Chapman and “Bulletproof Your Marriage” by Margaret McCracken. We are doing our best to equip ourselves early in our marriage with respect, support and intentional love for the other person to see us through the highs and the lows of the marriage journey.

 

3. YOU GUYS HAVE HAD A BIG SECOND YEAR OF MARRIAGE WITH BOTH STARTING YOUR CAREERS, MOVING HOUSE AND NOW EXPECTING YOUR FIRST BABY (WOO!) – HOW HAVE YOU MANAGED AND LEARNED TO SUPPORT EACH OTHER THROUGH ALL THIS BIG TRANSITIONS?

JD & SD: We approached these new transitions in the same way we have faced every new and exciting season in our relationship – with teamwork! We have been each other’s biggest support and been willing to go above and beyond to meet each other’s needs.

Although many people have been surprised by our decision to start a family at this stage in our lives (Steph is 22 and Siah is 23 and we have both started new careers this year), our pregnancy has brought a huge amount of blessing, gratitude and positive change in our lives. We have found ourselves with new direction and clarity in many areas of our lives as a result of starting a family. For example, it was the catalyst for Siah seeking a change in career from personal training to landscaping in order to better provide for our growing family and align our work schedules to allow us to spend more time together and eventually have more time to spend with our son.

Despite being a qualified midwife, I (Steph) have struggled with a bit of anxiety around being pregnant as we had some early complications. This is the downside of knowing too much sometimes! Siah has been my biggest voice of calm, encouragement and reason throughout it all. His unwavering love for me has made me have courage and confidence in myself as I am changing, both physically and mentally, to prepare to be a mother. We both feel that this baby was given to us at the perfect time and we are so excited to meet our little boy!

 

4. SHARE YOUR MOST RECENT, OR FAVOURITE GO-TO DATE

JD & SD: To be honest, we don’t actually go on regular dates. As Steph is a shift worker, we are not able to commit to a regular date night. Instead, we tend to make the most of whatever time we are lucky enough to share, whether that be watching Survivor or The Bachelor together, grocery shopping and cooking together, going for walks or bike rides or catching an Italian feast at our local Sofia’s restaurant. As an added bonus of not spending money on traditional regular dates, we tend to save up that money for bigger trips like going camping or going to the snow.

 

5. SHARE YOUR BEST PIECE OF ADVICE TO KEEP A MARRIAGE THRIVING

JD: My best piece of advice would be to never stop learning about your spouse. You should constantly be learning more and more about them everyday and this will help you to know and understand your spouse better. The better you understand them the better you will be able to love them in the way they need to be loved.

SD: Come to the marriage with a servant heart. If you and your spouse each seek the other’s needs above your own, the marriage becomes a beautiful testimony to the power of teamwork and each person will feel valued and fulfilled.