boys gone bad, girls gone mad

Now it's a whole new ball game. Things are complicated even before there is any talk of marriage! Because we are human, most of us fall in love. And that tends to happen somewhere in our mid-twenties, where relationships that last more than a couple of dates usually turn into "something serious." And that "something serious" needs a definition of its own. Take me for example: I'm 25, been a relationship for 2 years, with a guy who's 26. Now here's the thing: we love each other, we know we're the right fit, we can imagine spending the rest of our lives together... but here's the other thing: we're too young. Mid-twenties is now too young. My great-grandmother got married at 16 and had five kids by the time she was my age. Can I ever consider a remotely close scenario?
Twenty-five and thinking of marriage gives me knots in my stomach. My boyfriend says he wishes we met at 29, so he could be spending this time "enjoying" his youth and all the hot women that come his way. Doesn't sound like something you should tell your girlfriend? True, but what's also true, is that... it's true. That's how men think: "I love you, but I'm a man and we have animal instincts, you couldn't possibly understand." The result usually goes something like that: boys gone bad, girls gone mad, breakups inevitable. Or you can do what I do, which is try to figure out the concept of the 21st century relationship.
When my grandparents [yes, back to them] started dating, they were married six months later --while still in the lovey-dovey phase. Then its the honeymoon period; followed by the joy of pregnancy, the excitement of the first born, the efforts focused on changing diapers and getting him to burp; right until it's time for a second bun in the oven. There was no time for boring. No time for routine.
Now relationships sometimes lasts six or seven years before anything alters the routine. And there you find yourself stuck somewhere in limbo. You are with someone, but does that mean that you can talk about "us" like it's a done deal? Should you be considering career choices and geographical ambitions according to his? Or is that going to freak him out? The problem is, there is no guidebook.
And that's not even considering how much effort you have to do to keep your relationship not only working, but fun, passionate, spicy, years and years after the initial lovey-dovey phase. It's just hard to do when you don't get the help of engagements, weddings, honeymoons, pregnancies, babies, and the etc. You're so comfortable in that little "something serious" couple of yours that eyes can wonder, minds can wonder, and let's face it, it's not like it was the first few months.