Married Life

They say that married life brings out the worst in people. You get to see each other's weird habits and being together constantly brings you to a point when you would be totally annoyed at each other. There are so many jokes and so many horror stories about it, it's a real wonder why some people still bother to get married.

In my case, everyday that I spend with Bryan makes me realize how lucky I am to be with him. I found the person who can read my mind before I say anything, who knows me so well that he surprises me with the simplest of things and who is open-minded enough to be a modern husband.

I think it also helps that we work in different time zones but live in the same geographical area. So every weekend when I finally spend quality time with him, I really just cherish every moment. We don't have time to fight except when my pregnancy mood-swings come out. Of course there will be ups and downs to this, but I have no regrets so far.

Surnames

I always knew that if ever I got married, I would either retain my surname or hyphenate it. I recently filled out the forms to update my civil status and name. I insisted that moving forward all official records will still contain my mother's surname and will have my hyphenated surname. Sometimes I still get this surprised look from people who can't understand why a girl with 5 names will want to add another one to the list. I don't know, I guess I'm really just attached to my mother and I don't want to let go of her memory. At the same time, I am attached to my name because I've had that for the last 26 years, why give it up now?

Well, I'll just have to be patient with explaining to hospital nurses/ government agencies why I have 2 surnames put together. It's still not as commonly accepted here in the Philippines unlike in other countries where women get to retain their names. I always wondered why we have to take on the man's surname in the first place? It's tradition, but it's a practice I've always questioned. The best compromise for now really is just to add it. It's just a bummer if you have really long name.