Experts Say Celebrating Small Relationship Milestones Is Actually Great For Your Bond

In relationships, there are certain large milestones that are understood as moments that deserve to be celebrated. Anniversaries, the first time you say "I love you," or anything else in between are all exciting, but there comes a time in just about every relationship where you start to wonder if the little things are worth celebrating. Do you need to celebrate your first kiss, or your first night spent together, or your monthaversaries? And if they're so important, should you celebrate small relationship milestones? Well, you might want to.

"When you’re courting, or being courted, every relationship milestone matters." Julie Spira, online dating expert, tells Elite Daily. "Whether it’s meeting your partner’s friends or family for the first time, or going away on your first vacation together, celebrating these milestones, both online for some couples who are active on social media, or offline for those who don’t over-share is important for the flow of the relationship."

No matter what, it's important that both you and your partner feel appreciated, so doing something small to celebrate smaller milestones is still a great idea. It shows your partner you care, and it's just something fun for you two to do together! But before you go celebrating the small things, what even are the small things?

According to Spira, there are a lot of little moments she would consider milestones. "One of the small relationship milestones I recommend celebrating is the monthly anniversary of your first date, or the date you first met," she explains. "It creates an fun ritual, and helps you schedule a regular calendared date night, leading up to your first dateversary, which is a bigger milestone." Don't feel silly celebrating the small things, because they eventually lead to the big things, and that's when you get to really have a good time.

Additionally, Spira also suggests celebrating the things that you might not have thought of before. "Also when you decide to be exclusive and delete your dating profiles, it’s a relationship milestone," she says. "I recommend deleting your profiles together and toasting to your new relationship status of being exclusive." It's really not a bad idea, and it's also pretty dang cute, if I do say so myself.

Make the little moments matter, even if you feel a little silly doing so. When you invest in your relationship, you'll get a return greater than anything else. But, does every celebration have to be big, or expensive? Not at all.

Those small milestones "should be celebrated by giving a look in the eyes filled with meaning, by holding hands and squeezing them, communicating by saying words of affirmation and touching the other person with love," dating coach John Keegan tells Elite Daily. "There are so many ways to celebrate, it doesn’t have to be with a with a big giant dinner or any kind of beverage at all, it can just be by being in a state of appreciation and gratitude for being with the other person."

If you love or care about your partner, then celebrating those little milestones is important! Even if your relationship is new or only a few months in, it's necessary to take the time to appreciate how far you've come. In fact, "three months is an important milestone in most relationships," Keegan says, "because that’s the point where a lot of people begin to see the cracks in the other person." In most cases, up until "that point, they were just an angel on earth and they were living in a bubble of love. So whether that's three months or if it happens after six months or one month, it’s an important moment because that’s the moment that you decide to actually continue on and be with this person as a person." At that point, you've reached another milestone worth celebrating.

Long story short, take the time to celebrate those small milestones. Meeting the family, saying you love each other, having sex, and every other event of "first" in your relationship deserves some recognition, at the very least. You don't want to look back and regret letting one pass you by, no matter how small it is.

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