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This entry is from our Expert Guest series where wedding and honeymoon professionals share their best tips on creating memories that last a lifetime.

Your wedding might have been a big, important event, but it’s really just a kick off for the rest of your married lives together. There is a long list of things you simply must do after all of the wedding festivities have finished and you’ve come back from your honeymoon, so go ahead and start writing a checklist that includes the following necessities to consider in your first year of marriage.

Tips For Your First Year Of Marriage

Settle Back Into Your Routine

Even though you might not be aware of it, it can be very easy to lose yourself in the logistics during the year leading up to your wedding day. Now that your after-work hours and weekends aren’t filled with looking at magazines and searching the internet for wedding inspirations or creating long to-do lists of wedding preparations, you will have some free time to fill with a new hobby, a new project you might want to start together, or even some time to dedicate to yourselves. So, after you come back from your honeymoon, make sure to pause for a moment and give yourselves some time to rediscover, or even reinvent, your pre-engagement routine.

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Make Your Last Name Official

If you’ve decided to take your partner’s last name, the best idea is to change it as soon as you can. So, after you come back from your honeymoon, pay a visit to the DMV and start the process of updating everything from your ID and driver’s license to your passport, credit card information, and even mailing addresses. It might seem like a hassle and quite a time-consuming task, but it is a necessity, so it’s always better to take care of it as soon as possible.

Set Up New Financial Goals

Now that the financial pressures of the wedding have been lifted and you have some room to breathe again, you need to sit down with your partner and talk about some money managing strategies and your financial future as a couple. For example: Do you and your partner have a plan for merging finances? Do you plan to have children in the near future? Or are you planning to buy a new home together? Whatever financial obstacles are coming your way, the first year of your marriage is the perfect time to discuss them and make appropriate budget plans and decisions.

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Invest in your new home

When you have the financials sorted out, it’s high time to turn the house you share into a true home. Make your marital bed the most comfortable king-size bed you can find, buy a big TV with an amazing sound system or a gaming console you could both enjoy, or invest in quality KitchenAid items that will make preparing food a breeze and a fun activity you could do together. Equip your house with whatever you need and want as a couple, and embrace the creation of a happy and cozy home where you could always get away from the world.

Plan a post-honeymoon trip

When your honeymoon is over and all of the newlywed joy and excitement starts to slowly fade, don’t let it affect your relationship in a negative way. Instead, soften the blow by fantasizing together about the ideal place you’d both love to visit for your next vacation. You don’t necessarily have to book a trip immediately – you can target a few convenient dates, such as six months from now, or even a perfectlyitimed one year anniversary. Even if your dream vacation is not all planned out yet, it’s still something to look forward to and a great way to build anticipation for new and exciting experiences.

Don’t forget about the romance

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Talk to each other and express your love as often as you can. Keep your phones off the dinner table and don’t forget how fun and exciting it can be to dress up. Avoid the temptation of spending all of your time together in sweatpants and don’t let the habit of romantic date nights fall into oblivion. Make an effort to win each other over again and again, because when you learn how to find the magic of your love in even the tiniest of things, you’ll be able to keep the spark going forever.

At the end of the day, the most important thing to do during your first year of marriage is to take heed of the advice of the people you love and trust, realize what works for you, then construct your own path together. After all, you are in charge of your own happiness.

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