how'd you know he was 'the one'

i'm making a book for my single friend and wanted to give advice as how i ...and others knew he was 'the one'

care to share?

also - please share if you had a smooth dating or was it an upward battle? (had a break up / got back together, etc..and then how'd you 'know')

i can only help give her advice with my experience, but i'd rather give her a bunch of tips. its time for her to get married too!!

I have never had to think twice about whether or not I want to be with him.
He still gives me butterflies.
He always tells me how beautiful and sexy I am.
He loves me for ME. I don't have to pretend when I am around him. He respects me.

After our 1st date I just did...

I knew he knew about 3 months into our relationship when he asked me to move in with him. That was 7 years ago!!!

thank you for sharing!!

see my guy and i hit it off great from the beginning but had some issues over little things (his past heartbreak in love)...broke up a little..then back together. now i'm wondering...ohh no! should of it been perfect from the beginning???

From the 1st look we both felt a spark that we had never felt before. Our first date was so easy, we could just be ourselves and it was great, we had such a fun time just talking and laughing.

I know he's the one bc he's the only one to ever make me feel so good about myself. He simply adores me in a way that I thought was only true in fairytales.

He respects me, he always makes sure I know I'm #1, he appreciates me. It's all the lil things!!! He's there for me no matter what, 100% we're a team for life!!!

All through my childhood I dreamed of meeting my prince - like most of us. And I asked my mom, 'How will I know?' She simply replied, you just will. Well, she was right. From the moment I saw him the hairs on my arms and back of my neck stood up. I just knew that he was my forever. The one I was going to grow old with.

From the very first kiss I knew something was different about him. I told him right after that that I was going to marry him....and of course he freaked out!!!

I could picture a real future with him and having kids and being a family.

We also have learned hoe to communicate a LOT better over the last 4 years, we are the type that really have to WORK to have a great relationship.

My FH and I were friends before we started dating. We actually were in different relationships when we met. But once it all started, it just felt right. I had never wanted to get married, but he changed that instantly. When I actually pictured the future with him, kids and all, then pictured it without him, it was settled. He was and still is the one.

While I agree that a lot of the time...people 'know' from the beginning...It is not always that way. For us...when we met we were both very scared to get serious too quick (we both came out of long bad relationships)...but after a year of dating we knew for sure taht we never wanted to be apart. For me...I love him because we share the same goals and values. We are very good at compromise and work together very well. Where I am weak he is strong and visa vera...but this took time to discovery. Together we make one incredible team...Life is hard and I 'know' that together we can conquer anything. On our wedding day we will be together 5.5 years.

I knew from the moment I saw him. I walked into the coffee shop, took one look at him and for the first time in my life, I was speechless. We talked for 6 hours, and we both joked about how it felt like we knew each other for centuries. After the second date I told everyone I knew I was going to marry him, even though I had said for years and years and years I would never marry. I was right - a little over one year later, we were married and I've never been happier!!

Its true what they say. 'you just know'.
We were friends first, and then one day he starts telling me how he remembers everything I've ever told him, likes, dislikes, favorite things, etc. and I just knew he was the one. We've been friends for 6 years, and in a relationship for over 4 years.
He's my soulmate.

He met my family and didn't run.

Actually, there is some validity to that. We had been dating about a month and a half before I invited him to a Bar Mitzvah where my entire family would be at once. Not just my immediate family but my father's whole side. I figured they were in a public place so they would be on their best behavior. During the cocktail hour, after having met FH for only 10 minutes, my brother in law says 'I like this one... dont F this up'. FH handled the party like a trooper.

Also, my father fell ill only about 4 months after we started dating. He was in and out of the hospital all last summer and last October, he was admitted and stayed for 9 months until he passed away this July 9th. I was at the hospital 5-7 days a week and FH would come with me. He never said a word about going. He passed a 'test' I never wanted to give. He was there for me when I needed him most and he listens to me cry and holds me too. If that doesnt tell me that he was the one, then nothing could.

I think thats great for people who just knew.....I'm not one of those just know people Don't get me wrong, I kind of knew FH was special. You know it the minute you meet him but I wasn't the type who would really jsut know anything. I spent a good many years dating around, having some not so great experiences, and by the age of 27 with the bulk of my friendships already married and working on children, I had to get to the point of changing my life plan and thinking to myself, it just may not work out for me. And I believe I really got to that acceptance. So I developed a life of independence where I relied on myself, took care of myself, and purposely did things on my own (like traveling to Ireland by myself) so that if someone happened to stumble into my life while I was leading my own life, well, I would be thrilled. I met FH at a Halloween party and needless to say, it wasn't that instant connection. I am an analyzer. I have to analyze everything and anything and with my FH, I analyzed him to death. He was a gentleman, really sweet, really nice, opened doors, put me first, etc. etc. and was completely opposite of every man I ever dated. In a word? He wasn't my type. One day I'm sitting on his back porch looking into his backyard and it hit me out of nowhere, what the heck was I asking for then? A man who put himself first, was emotionally unavailable, treated me like garbage, and didn't care for me at all. I would break up with FH because he challenged me to open up more of myself. It struck me right then and there that I needed to grow the heck up and realize that all my life I had told people everything I ever wanted in a man and once that person was there, in my life, willing to love me despite all my neurosis and moods, what did I want to do but run away from him because he threatened my life of independence (aka: not being emotionally involved with anyone). I wanted to take the easy way out. So from that moment on, I knew. I just knew. He was everything that was amazing. It wasn't that he completed me (because I really feel like we all need to complete ourselves) but its that he really shows me how to treat others. It's that I love who I am when I am with him. It's that I know no matter where our lives take us, he is going to support me to find a happiness WITHIN MYSELF, helping me achieve whatever goals I set up for myself. I want him on my side of the ring and I want him to be the one to show my children how good people really can be in this world if you show them a little bit of kindness. So, no it didn't just happen when I met him, but its been 'just happening' every day I know him. Its an every day falling in love type of experience that really did just happen to me not when I wasn't looking (because really, there is no such time when you're single ) but when my heart had been through enough troubled relationships/men to wake up and realize what life could be like when I gave a really nice guy a chance. And so I did. (woops, sorry so long! Got excited about this topic)