Gina Florio
December 15, 2016 10:30 am
Fox Searchlight Pictures

Even the most cynical of people can’t deny that the honeymoon phase of a relationship is an amazing thing to experience with another human being. You and your new S.O. are so excited just to be in each other’s presence that the simplest things make your heart race and your breath shorten. Blossoming love is a magical thing, which is why there are so many songs and poems written about it. We’ve all been there, but unfortunately, it’s a slice of heaven that eventually must come to an end.

There are some really rewarding things that come to your relationship when you move out of the honeymoon phase, though. You build up that strong trust that will get you through tough times, and you become so relaxed with each other that you stop caring about the silly things, like what you look like when you first wake up in the morning. Still, even when things are going smashingly well in your long-term relationship, you sometimes look back on the honeymoon period you had together and reminisce about the good old times when the PDA was endless.

Here are eight things about the honeymoon stage all of us miss.

1You get butterflies in your stomach when their name shows up on your phone.

Getting a text from your brand new partner can be so exciting you almost pee your pants. They’re thinking about me! How sweet! When they call, you answer the phone with overflowing enthusiasm, even if other people around you will hear all the lovey dovey stuff and roll their eyes.

2You think each other’s bad habits are really cute.

Sure, they leave the wet towel on the bed after a shower and chew with their mouth open, but they’re really cute, so everything they do is super cute. That stuff may bother the crap out of you in six months, but right now you let it fall away like water off a duck’s back.

3Disagreeing on something is nothing more than foreplay.

It’s a universal fact that hardly anybody fights during their honeymoon phase. If you happen to arrive to a point where you and your S.O. disagree on something, you’re too smitten with each other to waste your energy and turn it into a fight. Instead you just use it as fuel to get things going between the sheets.

4You surprise each other with little gifts.

A bouquet of flowers here, a bar of chocolate there. You can’t stop thinking about one another, which means stopping on the way home from work to pick them up a mini-surprise is anything but a chore.

5They’ll watch whatever TV show you want.

There’s no such thing as arguing about what to watch on Netflix when you’re honeymooners. Your partner is so stoked to be having a sleepover at all that they’ll endure any cheesy rom com or low-budget horror film you feel like watching.

6You cuddle every single night, no matter what.

When you crawl under the covers together at the end of the day, there’s no way you won’t wrap your arms and legs around each other if you’re a new couple. You just spent, like, almost 12 hours without each other, and that can feel like a lifetime when you’re in the honeymoon phase. These days, you’re so used to sleeping in the same bed that, on the nights when you’re utterly exhausted, you don’t even notice each other before you drift off into sleep.

7You always give each other a kiss when you’re leaving.

There is no shortage of goodbye kisses when you’re a fresh couple. Just the thought of not seeing each other for a whole day rips your heart to shreds, so you hug and kiss the mess out of one another. After being together for a little while, though, this habit slowly starts to fade, and it becomes much more common for you to rush out the door waving with whatever hand isn’t clinging to a traveling cup of coffee.

8Your friends can’t stop talking about how great it is that you guys got together.

When you’re in the honeymoon phase, you love talking about your romance. This also means you love hearing other people talk about your romance. You absolutely love it when friends gush about how good you guys are together, what a fun couple you make, and what a memorable wedding you would have. Once they get used to seeing you together all the time, though, the praise slowly fades. Doesn’t mean you still don’t make an outstanding couple. You just may to remind yourselves of this fact from time to time.