Is Our Love Life Normal ?.

Making the match
You may have ups and downs along the relationship road, but 63 percent of you say, “My guy is the best choice I could have made!” The other fundamentals:

When did you know he was the one?
9% dated less than 6 months before getting married; 27% dated 6 months to a year; 35% dated 2 to 3 years; 15% dated 4 to 5 years; 10% dated 6 to 9 years; 4% dated 10 years or more.

“My husband slept over on the first date and just never went home! We were married after nine months and have been married for over 12 years. We both felt that it was more than enough time before we got married.” — Jennifer Bull, 35, Murphysboro, IL

“We dated for three and a half years before getting married. I wanted to get rid of my debt beforehand so I wouldn’t go into marriage with that baggage. We’re glad we waited so long. It just proved that we were truly committed to each other.” — Rachel Rule, 32, Alexandria, VA

“I was living in Chicago when I was contacted by my now-hubby for a work-related matter. We began emailing, and six months later we were talking on the phone every night and decided to meet. So he flew out to a conference of mine. The second time we met, he flew up to Chicago to meet my three sons. The third time, I flew down to Atlanta to meet his four sons. The fourth time was our wedding day.” — Cherie Miller, 53, Acworth, GA

How similar (or not) are you?

“Our personalities are night and day. He is a clean freak, and I am … not a clean freak. He won’t do anything without making a spreadsheet first, and I go with the flow. He’s an engineer, and I’m all about the arts. He loves boy things like fishing and shooting, and I love romantic comedies. We’re opposites, but it works!” — Megan Marlena, 30, San Francisco

“We like to do the same things, and most of the time we think the same — and we can’t work out whether that has happened because we’ve spent so much time together or if that’s how we always were!” — Marsha Sharpe, 29, New York City

“My husband and I have personalities that are diametrically opposed: He’s outgoing, I’m introspective. He’s loud, I’m quiet. I find that our differences provide a crucial balance. There’s a reason opposites attract! We use our combined strengths for the common good of the family, and we happily coexist.” — Joanne Rock, 40, Peru, NY

Love and sex
So Stevie Wonder wasn’t the only one — sometimes your guy does just call to say “I love you,” and nearly as much as we women do! A whopping 50 percent of men say “I love you” lots of times during the day, compared with 51 percent of women. Now, the other ways you speak the language of love, with and without words (wink, wink).

Sex every night?! Yep, 3% of you do the ultimate love workout that often.

“My husband and I have sex twice a week, but I want more! Our sex life before was wonderful, almost every day. Since he turned 50, he’s slowed down. I hate having to wait for him to be in the mood. But our sex life is great, always has been.” — D.W., 52, Thonotosassa, FL

“As often as we both want to have sex. It just depends on our body clocks. If he wants to, we do it! If I want to, we do it! We both knew when we married that sex is a function of life and love, and we both understand that it is a stress reliever and it keeps us in ‘soul-mate mode.’” — K.M.C., 47, Louisville, KY

Who gets it going?
For nearly half of you, he’s the one making advances most often; 15% of you ladies come on to him more; the rest of you initiate about as often as he does.

“My husband has mostly initiated sex, at least since we’ve had kids. He kisses my neck or ear, and if we’re in bed he’ll roll over and tell me how beautiful I am. When I initiate, I surprise him with a ‘come hither’ look, or I just undress and ask if he’s too tired or can he handle a little entertainment. Corny, huh? But we have sex at least four times a week and we have been married for 15 years.” — C.R., 36, Chalfont, PA

“I initiate! I’ll send him text messages, grab his hand and lead him to the bedroom (when our child isn’t home), and occasionally I just tell him flat out. But if he came on to me, it would make me feel sexy. We don’t need to have sex five times a week — not that I wouldn’t like to sometimes!” — S.M., 42, Port Orange, FL