The 8 Best Pieces Of Relationship Advice We Ever Got From Our Moms
Here's how mom's wisdom can help your love life.
Since the beginning of time, mothers have been doling out advice to their children on what to eat, how to behave, and when that long-overdue haircut is urgently needed.
When it comes to love, some moms adopt a strict "don't ask, don't tell" policy, while others find themselves privy to all of their offspring's relationship secrets.
We asked readers to share love advice from their moms (or mother-like figures) so the rest of us might learn from them.
Here are the 8 best pieces of relationship advice we ever got from our moms:
1. Honesty, honesty, honesty
"In life and in love, it's easy to know what is right and what is wrong. The hard part is following through on those choices. Honesty always works out in the long run."
2. Spending time apart is key
"Some time in high school or college, I was crazy about someone and she told me, 'When you grow up you can't be with the person you love all the time. You have to get used to being apart.' That was good advice at the time. Now it seems like common sense; it wouldn't be healthy to be with the person you love all the time."
3. The past matters
"Your background helps you or hurts you. She was talking about taking photographs, but it applies to love, too."
4. Don't do anything for him now that you don't want to do for the rest of your life
"My mother-in-law does a great job communicating her 'love philosophy' through her actions. She's very attentive to her husband. She takes good care of him and he's so appreciative and respectful of her. On the contrary, my best friend's mom said to her daughter upon moving in with her boyfriend, 'Don't do anything for him now that you don't want to be doing for the rest of your life.' A good lesson in setting expectations and tempering behavior when you're head-over-heels and all you want to do is nurture."
5. Bad boys aren't all they're cracked up to be
"Mama told me, 'Watch out for the bad boys because they rarely turn out to be good husbands.'"
6. Accept him as is or leave
"You can't change your partner. Either accept him as he is or go your separate ways."
7. Make sure they're the ones before going all-in
"My mom's love advice basically amounted to 'This is it. Once you're married, you can never get out,' and, 'Make sure you've explored all your options before committing to just one.'"
8. Money doesn't hurt
"A good friend's mom once famously said that it's just as easy to fall in love with someone rich as someone poor."
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