Love is lovely.

Location: Home
Listening to: The news

Oh, you guys. I am in love. Absolutely, incredibly, deeply in love.

This seems like the time when I would pull a fast one and tell you that I'm in love with something ridiculous or predictable, like shoes or ice cream. But that's not the case. Well, it is. I love those things. But, I am in love with the most lovely boy ever in existence.

I try not to gush too much, because I know when all someone talks about is their sweetie, it gets kind of obnoxious. Like, I know you're in love and that's great, but, honestly, get a life. So, I try (and kind of fail) to keep my boy-gushing to a minimum here. But I just felt like letting my love flow tonight.

Brad and I have been dating for nearly 7 months, which is about twice as long as any of my most recent previous relationships have lasted. And every day I find myself falling deeper and deeper in love with him. I'm used to dating guys who are douchebags. I mean, they never tried to be, but they were. They would put themselves first and take me for granted (which sounds kind of conceited, but a relationship is supposed to be about compromise and balance, not ME! ME! ME! ME!).

This guy is totally different. He's adorable. He is incredibly cute and the sweetest boy alive. He's always doing what he can to make me happy, which is nice because I try my hardest to make him happy, too. He's constantly surprising me with little things and he's the best cuddler and makes me feel so safe and cozy and happy and loved.

When I went to visit him last week, we celebrated his birthday. I got him a pot and a bunch of macaroni, because he only had a frying pan and that severely limited the food he could make himself. I also got him a video game he really, really, really, really wanted, and a picture frame with photos of us in it. He told me he loved it all, but his favorite was the frame. He explained that he's never had framed pictures before, and now he has several of us together. It made me smile that the least expensive gift, something he hadn't asked for or expected, was his favorite.

He also surprised me with something. I have a claddagh ring that I've worn every day for the past four years. For those of you unfamiliar with claddagh, it's an Irish symbol depicting two hands holding a heart that has a crown above it. It's really symbolic. The heart stands for love, the hands for friendship, and the crown for loyalty. It's on all kinds of jewelry, but with rings, it takes an extra meaning. The way you wear the ring shows the status of your heart: single, taken, engaged, or married.

A few weeks ago, I noticed that my ring had a crack running halfway down the band and mentioned that I would have to replace it soon because it was at risk of breaking in half. Brad and I spent a little while looking up pictures online of different types of claddagh rings so I could get an idea of what I would want to replace mine. A few days later, he mentioned that he had a surprise for me that I would get when I came to visit him.

When I got to his apartment, we sat around waiting for the FedEx guy to deliver my surprise. And it ended up being this ring. I've never gotten jewelry from a guy before. And it's gorgeous. And it fits perfectly. And it's amazing and he's amazing and I love him.

He's coming up to visit me tomorrow and meet some of my friends. I'm so excited. This long distance stuff is no fun at all. It's working and we haven't had any problems thus far, but it's hard being so far away.

Sorry for the mushy overload. I hope you are all having wonderful summers! If you're looking for something fun to do in July, check out Allyson's blog for info on a potential blog book club!

More later!